I love you still the same
by Snowflakesandangels
Summary: Summary: Yule was not Stoick's best time of year. The one when his son came out was both the worst, and in the end, best one he'd ever had. Extended story of "It's Gonna Be a Long Night" Warnings: Language, arguments, car accident, cultural drinking, brief mention of homophobia/violence. Nothing is graphic. Pairings: Hiccup/Jack, Bunny/Toothless, Gobber/OC. Art is on DA/tumblr
1. Chapter 1 - Coffee and conversations

**Character Notes: At the beginning of the story, Jack Overland is 20, his sister Emma is 14, and their mother's name is Helen. Hikke Haddock (Hiccup) is 19, Nathaniel Fury (Toothless) is 18, and his mother's name is Nora. Ethan Aster (Bunny) is 19.**

 **A/N: This is an extended story of "It's Gonna Be a Long Night" that begins three years earlier. Chapter updates will be uploaded every Saturday through Christmas eve (December 24** **th)** **so be sure to Story Follow if you want to read the Yule surprise as it's published.**

Year one - November 15th

Hic!

"Oh for Frost's sake!"

Jack rummaged through his backpack until he found the unopened bottle of water he kept for emergencies. He wasn't going to get much work done like this, and anyone with hiccups that bad obviously needed it way more than he did. Hiking his backpack higher on his shoulder, he started wandering the stacks of Burgess State University library.

Herk!

Rounding the corner of 620.00 - 629.99 revealed the back of a brunet with incredibly red ears, who jumped with surprise when Jack held the bottle of water in front of his face. "You need this? I haven't opened it yet."

Staring back gratefully with big hazel green eyes, the boy tried to take a breath. "Thank -hic- you!"

Jack chuckled as the other boy drank deeply, the redness in his face fading into the cutest freckles ever seen. "You're welcome. Don't hold your breath so long next time; you looked like you were going to pass out."

"I won't. Again, thank you so much, I really appreciate it."

Jack laughed and held out his hand, "And again, you're welcome. I'm Jack Overland by the way."

"Hikke Haddock."

"Your parents named you Hickey?"

The brunet looked confused for a second, then mortified. "What? Gods no! It's pronounced Heek-eh. It's Norwegian."

"Oh. Heek-eeee, yeah I'm not even close am I?"

Slightly crooked teeth showed through Hikke's lopsided grin, "It's ok, not too many people get it right."

"How about I just call you Hiccup then?"

"Oh gods! You wouldn't!"

Jack grinned back mischievously, "Maybe I would!"

"You know for some reason I believe you?" Hikke shook his head and began packing away his books.

In the few minutes they had been talking, Jack had taken a liking to the brunet with the cute smile and freckles, and maybe wanted to get to know him a little more. "Hey, um, do you want to get some coffee? I know a great place not too far from here."

"Are you asking me out or something?"

Mentally Jack was shouting: _Yes! Yes! I am!_ Though externally he managed to stay cool, "I just like getting to know people and you seem like you might have an interesting story."

Hikke looked at Jack as if pondering something before gesturing towards the door. "Coffee sounds great. After you."

The two boys stepped out into grey afternoon drizzle that made their breath surround their heads like miniature clouds, and walked the two blocks to Burgess's best coffee shop. The front door opened with the jangle of a bell and a rush of warm coffee scented air that soon washed away the gloom from outside. The unimposing grey brick exterior belied the cozy atmosphere inside; the walls were hung with an eclectic variety of artwork ranging from simple charcoal sketches to detailed oil paintings. Hiccup gazed around appreciatively and nodded, "It's very hygge."

Jack was about to ask what he meant, but the brunet's attention had turned to the menu board. "This is actually a nice selection. Oooh, I need to try that." Hiccup ordered black coffee and Jack chose mocha with double whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles.

The boys sat down at an empty table in the back corner and Jack started his 'getting the freckled cutie to talk about himself' mission while they gazed out into the rain. "What was that word you said earlier? Um, higgle, or something?"

Hiccup chuckled, "Hygge; higg-eh. Or koselig. They're words to describe something very cozy; like having dinner at home with your friends in soft candlelight with fresh bread, it's snowing outside, but you're warm and comfortable."

Jack felt his eyes sting a little at the thought. "Wow... I could almost feel everything you said. Is that Norwegian too?"

Hiccup blew on his coffee and nodded. "Yep, my grandfather's family was Norwegian and I'm named after him. I studied the language for a while in high school, but I'm a bit rusty now. So what about you? Where's your family from?"

Jack took a deep drink of his cocoa, enjoying the feeling of it sliding all the way into his chest. "Right here in Burgess for the last three hundred years. I was named after one of my ancestors who fell in the pond and was never seen again."

"Sounds like a ghost story to me."

The white haired boy grinned and leaned closer, "Oh, it is. They say that sometimes he can be seen skating in the moonlight. I even saw him once."

Hiccup's green eyes widened, "You did?"

"Mhm. About six years ago my sister and I were skating on that very pond when the ice started to crack. I was able to push her out of the way but I fell through and almost drowned. Right before I fell though, I saw this kid waving his arms like he was trying to warn me, and in the water I felt like something was stopping me from sinking."

"Wow, so he's like... your guardian."

Jack smiled as he thought about it and leaned back, taking another sip his drink, "Yeah, I guess he is."

Hiccup tentatively brought his own cup to his lips and tasted the contents.

"How is it?"

The brunet wrinkled his nose and shrugged, "Hm, not as good as the stuff I make at home, but it's not too bad. I've definitely had worse."

Jack chuckled, "Are you an expert on the subject?"

"I wouldn't be much of a Scandinavian if I wasn't."

"You seem to be pretty connected to your heritage."

Hiccup shrugged again, "I don't really care that much, it's more of a way to try and honor my mom. She died when I was a baby and I... I know how much I remind my dad of her. I guess I'm keeping her alive for him."

Jack nodded sadly, "I'm sorry. You must love your dad a lot. Are you close?"

An almost pained look crossed the other boy's face. "Kind of, not really, yes and no? It's complicated. What about you?"

Jack shook his head, "It's just me and my sister and our mom. We're all really close, so it's been hard for them since I moved out for school."

The two sat in silence, each trying to think of what to say next. When they did speak it was at the same time and they both laughed. Hiccup stayed quiet and smiled for Jack to go ahead. Jack, for his part, tried to calm the heart flutters that smile caused, and focus on his cup. (Which, he noticed with annoyance, was almost empty.) "Soooo, um, what are you studying in school?"

Hiccup drained the last of his coffee and wrinkled his nose one more time. "Art and engineering. Sometimes the professor has me substitute teach the class because I'm an inventor. You?"

Jack stared across the table with his mouth open, "Uh, mind backing up a bit! If you teach college classes, why are you even in college? Shouldn't you be at CERN or something?"

The brunet snorted a chuckle and flashed that grin again. "CERN is particle physics, not engineering! I only teach the classes to get extra credit; there are some subjects I'm not really good at so I take better grades wherever I can get them. I'm just a normal guy who happens to invent stuff. Now back to my question, what do you study?"

The white haired boy had to think for a second, "Oh, um, nature photography and folktales. I've always been fascinated by childhood heroes like Santa Clause, the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, and the Sandman; but out of all of them my absolute favorite is-"

"Jack Frost?"

Hiccup tried to figure out the look on Jack's face at his comment; it was a strange mixture of shock and wonder with more than a little sadness.

"You're going to laugh at me now. It's ok, I'm used to it. It's weird for a twenty year old guy to believe in fairy tales, right?" Jack looked down at his near empty cup; he didn't feel like finishing it now. He shouldn't feel this bad about someone thinking he was strange. It was hardly anything new; most people treated him like he was invisible anyway so why should this guy be any different? Jack was brought back from his thoughts by a warm hand settling on his arm.

"Hey. I'm not laughing. If you're weird for believing in fairy tales then I'm weird for believing in dragons. I get it, no one sees the person you really are. They stop at whatever they think you should be, and when you don't live up to their expectations, they ignore you."

Hiccup's gentle green eyes held years of hurt and disappointed dreams as he squeezed Jack's arm once more, "I understand."

The warmth of Hiccup's hand lingered after he moved it away and Jack smiled. "Thanks. I guess I better get going; I've got a test today that I barely studied for so I probably shouldn't be late. It was nice meeting you, Hiccup."

The other boy looked at his watch and yelped before hurriedly shrugging on his coat and running for the door, "Yeah, you too. Sorry, but I'm late for a class I'm supposed to be teaching."

Jack finished the last of his drink and was just standing to leave when he felt something being shoved into his hand and heard the cafe door slam shut. Looking down, the boy's pale cheeks warmed at seeing a phone number and note scribbled on one of the cafe's paper napkins. _'Call if you need anything or just want someone to talk to.'_ Jack tucked the napkin into his shirt pocket and headed back towards campus with a warmth in his heart he hadn't felt in a long time.

Hiccup was glad he only had to turn on a documentary video for his class since he was out of breath from running. For some reason he was also feeling slightly distracted, but attributed that to full strength coffee on an empty stomach. Well, not exactly empty; there seemed to be a few terrible terrors flying around in there. He shook his head and tried to focus on the projector screen. The video showed Vikings making flexible swords that were less prone to breaking during battle, a topic that would normally keep him on the edge of his seat, now only faded into a background hum as his mind wandered to the white haired boy with the haunting blue eyes. Gods how he'd love to look at those eyes every day... So full of fun but with a sense of sadness, and childlike innocence, and that longing to be seen. Hiccup didn't realize how long he'd been thinking about Jack until a fellow student nudged him and cleared her throat.

"Earth to Professor Haddock! Mind giving us our assignment so we can get out of here?"

Hiccup blushed and handed out a stack of papers after taking one for himself and dismissed the class. All the way to his dorm, Hiccup's mind puzzled over the strangely familiar feelings he was having, so he decided to call the one person who always seemed to have all the answers.

Tuffnut was out when Hiccup arrived in the tiny dorm room they shared, so he took the opportunity to actually call instead of texting.

"Hey Astrid."

"Hikke? Oh my gods, you have a voice!"

Astrid groaned, and Hiccup could hear muffled arguments in the background. "Are you busy? I can call back later if you need me to."

The girl's voice rose over the ever increasing noise, "No, please, talk to me now! Ruff and Tuff are driving me crazy!"

"So that's where he went. Why don't you come over here and we can go get something to eat."

"Thank you! I'll be right there!"

Astrid arrived a few minutes later and the two friends walked in the gathering dusk along Burgess's main street. Astrid noticed her friend was quieter than usual, which meant he was feeling unsure about something. "You want to talk about it?"

Hiccup smiled at how his friend always knew his moods better than he did. "I think so, but it's a little strange."

"You're always strange, that's why I love you. Now out with it."

The brunet blew a long breath which turned to steam and floated away as he started to babble. "Is it normal to feel like you want to look at someone all day and hug them and comfort them when they're sad and have to stop yourself from holding their hand?"

"Yes, yes, yes, and why didn't you? If you like someone you should totally hold their hand!"

Hiccup's face was glowing an uncomfortable red under the streetlights and he stopped walking. Astrid put her hand on his shoulder and softened her tone a little. "What's wrong, Hikke?"

"Is it normal if the other person is a guy?"

The girl smiled and wrapped her friend in a hug. "Perfectly normal; and if you want, I can introduce you to a group that can help with any questions you have."

Hiccup looked at his best friend with a relieved smile, "Astrid, you are amazing."

The blonde tossed her braid back and smirked, "You know it! Now let's get something to eat, I'm starving! And I want to hear all about Loverboy. Is he nice?" Hiccup blushed again and grinned before launching into a lengthy ramble about the boy he was already head over heels for. "Oh gods, you have no idea!"

Jack groaned and joined the throng of students leaving the testing room as they made their way slowly towards the glowing exit sign that meant freedom. He knew he would get a passing grade but probably not much more than that. Not studying was a pretty dumb thing to do (Hey, it was a snow day!) but the green eyed, freckle scattered, chestnut haired boy currently taking up 99% of his brain didn't help either. Not like he was complaining... that crooked little grin of his made Jack's cheeks pink as he thought of it again and was still on his mind when he walked through the door of the house he shared with his four best friends.

A petite girl with multicolored hair looked up from her homework when he came in. "Hey Jack, how was your test?"

Kicking off his sneakers as soon as the door shut behind him, Jack hung up his coat and headed through the living room. "Ugh, don't ask, I probably got a C minus if that."

A tall, muscled, and tattooed boy caught him in a noogie as he passed through to the kitchen. "Should've studied then. 'Ello, what's this?" Aster plucked the napkin from Jack's pocket and held it above his head.

"Hey! Give that back!"

"Oho! Frosty's got a phone number! Is he cute?"

"Like I'm gonna tell you! Now give it back!"

Tooth sighed and called from the front room, "Bunny, give Jack the paper!"

Aster noogied his friend one more time before handing him the napkin. "I was only teasin' ya, Frostbite. No hard feelings?"

Jack carefully folded the napkin and replaced it in his pocket, "No, but just remember, if you give me a hard time on this, I will get you later."

The taller boy grinned. "Wouldn't dream of it, mate."

That night Jack lay wide awake on his bed and listened to Aster's soft purr-like snores from the bunk below. Normally the prankster would be planning ways to exasperate his friends, but tonight was different... Tonight, Jack was thinking how he could arrange to see a certain freckled brunet again.

 **A/N: Please R &R if you liked it, and don't forget to Story Follow for updates.**


	2. Chapter 2 - I miss you most on holidays

Ch. 2 I miss you most on holidays

Year two - December 20th

Winter break couldn't come soon enough for most of Burgess's student population, but for one pair of boys, it came far too soon. Astrid was driving herself and Hiccup to Berk for the holidays, though he lived in the college's dorm during school term, his summer and winter breaks were spent at home with his father. Tuffnut had already gone by the time Jack arrived to mope around the dorm while Hiccup finished his packing.

"I won't get to see you for a whole two weeks! Do you know how long that is?!"

Hiccup stuffed a pile of clothes into his duffle bag after giving them the sniff test and deciding he didn't actually care if they were clean or not. "Fourteen days. Or three hundred thirty six hours, or twenty thousand one hundred sixty minutes, or twelve million ninety six thousand seconds... Do you want me to stop there or go on?"

Jack flopped backward onto Hiccup's bed and groaned, "Well it feels longer than that!"

Hiccup frowned and went to lie down next to his boyfriend. "I know. I don't want to go either, but... I've got to take care of my dad at Christmas, you know? I just, I care about him even if we aren't that close."

Jack laced his fingers with Hiccup's and sighed into his shoulder, "It's ok, I understand. I'm going home too, so I'll be with my mom and my sister. I just miss you already, that's all."

Hiccup shifted so he could kiss Jack properly, "Me too."

They lay quietly together until the door suddenly opened and two blonds walked in. Tuffnut made a gagging gesture and climbed up to his bunk to retrieve the handheld game under his pillow, while Astrid grinned at the two madly blushing dorks who were pretending they hadn't been caught kissing. Hiccup resumed filling his duffle bag with completely random items as he tried to regain his composure.

"Hey Astrid! Hi Astrid, hi Astrid, are you ready to go?"

Astrid shook her head in mock sympathy, "I'm sorry, but yes. Stormfly waits for no one."

After double checking that he had everything, Hiccup locked the door and they all made their way outside. Tuffnut was somehow playing his game while walking at the same time, and Jack asked, "Who's Stormfly?"

Astrid grinned and pointed, "She's right over there."

Jack blinked at the blue and yellow jalopy that Hiccup was loading his bag into. "Your car? Ok, cool, whatever works. Nice to meet you, Stormfly."

The blonde girl laughed and elbowed Hiccup in the stomach. "You picked one with a sense of humor here. Now get that last hurrah of a kiss so we can get going!"

Even though he was blushing again, Hiccup wrapped his arms around Jack and kissed him. White hair contrasted sharply with the bright pink of Jack's cheeks as the kiss deepened even more. Hiccup stepped back and grinned at his dizzy boyfriend, "Hopefully that will last until I come back. I'll call you as soon as I get home, ok?"

Jack nodded and watched Astrid's tightly packed car drive out of sight. "Wow."

After dropping off Tuffnut, Hiccup got into the front passenger seat and settled in for the hour long ride home. He and Astrid had always had an easy silence together, neither concerned when the other didn't speak for days on end, just being there when they were ready to talk again. This time however, Hiccup was in one of his worried extra-silent-silences and Astrid wasn't about to let him stay there.

"What's up?"

"Hmm?" Hiccup tore his attention away from absently watching the scenery go by. "Oh. I was just thinking about Jack."

"He's not going to die in the next two weeks, Hiccup. You don't have to worry about him."

"I wasn't worrying about _him_ specifically, Astrid. I was thinking about how my dad would react to his son having a boyfriend, and that is not something I want to deal with right now."

Astrid turned her eyes back to the road and stayed silent for a few minutes. "Is there any reason he wouldn't like the idea specifically?"

Hiccup gave a humorless snort. "Apart from dropping hints the size of Gronkles that I should be marrying you? He's never said anything on the subject one way or the other, but I think like a lot of other things, he'd be a traditionalist on this too."

The ride continued in silence until the outskirts of Berk could be seen in the distance under heavy grey storm clouds. Astrid glanced briefly at Hiccup as she turned off the main road. "So what are you going to do?"

"I'm not starting a fight with my dad, and Jack is too important to me to involve anyone who won't understand. You won't say anything, will you, Astrid?"

She pulled into the Haddock's driveway and turned off the car before turning to her friend. "I won't, I promise."

Jack was almost bowled over by the small girl leaping into his arms as he got out of Tooth's car. "Jack! You're home!"

The white haired boy laughed and spun his sister around in the lightly falling snow. "I missed you too, Em! Where's mom?"

"I'm here!" A kind middle aged brunette waved from the front porch of the small grey house and wiped her hands on an apron. Jack grinned as the warm scent of baking wafted through the open door.

"Cookies?"

"What else? Come on in, no point standing out here all day."

The woman turned to Tooth who had been unloading Jack's bag from the trunk. "Won't you please come in? I've been making sugar cookies and I have lots of tea and cocoa to go with them."

The girl flashed a perfect toothpaste-ad smile and followed the Overlands inside. Jack excused himself to drag his duffle bag up to his room and Tooth gazed around the house appreciatively. "You have a lovely home Mrs. Overland."

"Well thank you! And please, call me Helen. Are you a friend of Jack's? How silly of me, I haven't even asked your name yet."

Tooth took a cookie, silently thought of her teeth enamel, but enjoyed the melting warmth sliding over her tongue anyway. "Mmmm, this is delicious. My name is Tatiana but everyone calls me Tooth. And yes, I'm one of Jack's housemates; five people chipping in on rent keeps the cost down for everyone."

Jack rejoined them in the kitchen just then and bit into a cookie. "Yeah, but man is that place small! You're the only one who doesn't have to share a room; I have to listen to the Kangaroo snore all night."

Emma giggled as she ate her second cookie, "Who's the Kangaroo?"

Jack smiled and ruffled her hair, "My roommate Aster. He's from Australia and he purrs when he snores."

They all laughed and Tooth thanked Helen for the cookie, and at the woman's insistence took several for her housemates. When the girl had gone, Helen pulled her children into a hug, "Mmmm, I'm so glad to have you both home. I'm glad you're doing so well at school, Jack, but I still missed you."

Jack kissed his mother's cheek, "I missed you too, mom."

Emma leaned against her mother and sighed, "Well you're here for two whole weeks now, so I guess we'll just have to put up with you."

Helen laughed as Jack playfully growled and started chasing Emma around the kitchen. "It's good to know nothing's changed!"

Eventually the boy caught his sister around the waist and blew a raspberry into her neck. "Give up, squirt?"

"Never! But I will if you brought me a present."

"Can't wait for Christmas huh? Ok, I might have picked up something for you..."

The brunette girl punched the air in victory. "Yes! Score for Emma Overland!"

Jack shook his head and pulled a small package out of his pocket. "Here ya go, kiddo. Merry, very early, Christmas."

Emma fluttered her eyelashes and opened the tissue paper wrapped present, "Thank you Jack. Oh pretty!"

Jack took the single pink pearl necklace from its wrapping and clasped it around his sister's neck. "Anything for my princess."

Emma blushed happily and ran off to find a mirror. Helen smiled and started preparing dinner, "That was sweet, Jack, you always treat Emma so well." The brunette woman stole a sideways glance as her son set the table. "Have you found any other princesses while you've been away?"

Jack laughed, "Sisters? I think one is enough, thank you."

"I heard that!"

"Emma, go wash up for dinner!" Helen called, before turning again to her son, "No, I meant have you started dating anyone? Tooth seems like a nice girl."

Emma came back in and grinned at her brother's blush. "You are going out with someone! Come on, spill the dirt."

Jack scowled slightly, "Maybe it's none of your business, Emma."

The girl was taken aback at his sudden sharp tone. "But- but Jack, you never keep secrets from me. Why don't you trust me?"

Jack sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Em, I'm, I'm sorry, it's not like that. Emma?"

She had already run away, and the door of her bedroom closed with a loud slam. Turning off the stove, Mrs. Overland pulled out two kitchen chairs and sat down. "Come on, Jack, tell me what's wrong."

The boy slumped into the other chair and buried his face in his hands, "There's no easy way to say this... I'm not going out with Tooth, she's a good friend and housemate, but I don't feel like that towards her... I'm gay."

Jack sat tensely waiting for his mother's reaction; she had never given him any reason to be nervous, but he knew that everyone took things like this differently.

"Jack, look at me."

Blue eyes glanced up into warm brown. "I love you, sweetie. I always have and I always will. I'm proud of you for telling me something this important to you, and I'm glad you felt you could trust me. Have you met anyone special?"

Jack started laughing softly in relief and blushed again. "Yeah. I've been seeing a really nice guy for the last two months, and I really like him."

Helen stood up and resumed cooking, "Good for you! I hope I get to meet him sometime. Now, will you please go talk to your sister? Dinner will be ready in ten minutes."

Emma buried her head deeper under the pillow as a timid knock sounded on her door. "Go away, Jack!"

"Please Emma, I want to apologize."

The brunette groaned and sat up, "Fine, it's not locked."

Jack opened the door and came to sit next to her on the bed. "I'm really sorry, Em, I shouldn't have snapped."

Emma's brown eyes still held a few tears as she looked up, "Why don't you trust me?"

The boy sighed and started rubbing his sister's back. "I trust you more than anyone, It's just... dating is a slightly tricky subject for me."

The girl looked confused, "Why? You didn't have a problem when I went out with Jamie."

Jack laughed at the memory of his little sister's 'date' to see Rise of the Guardians with her middle school crush. "Yeah, I've known Jamie since he was born and I also knew that if he tried anything, Sophie would kill him. How's that going by the way?"

Emma smiled and shrugged, "It's cool, we just hang out at the park or the library, you know. Why is dating hard for you?"

Jack sighed again, "Because I'm dating a guy, and some people don't like that."

"Oh... I don't mind. As long as you're happy, I'm happy."

Jack scooped his sister up in a bear hug, "I've got the best little sister in the whole world! Thanks, Em. Mom says it's time for dinner, so we better get out there."

The cheeky brunette hopped off the bed and bolted for the door before her brother could catch her. "I'm giving you mistletoe for Christmas!"

-

Stoick Haddock was pleased to see Astrid's car in the drive when he arrived home from work that evening. "Hello kids! I'm glad to see ye made it here before the storm. Are ye staying for dinner, Astrid? I planned on ordering a pizza tonight since I didn't know when ye two would get in."

Hiccup flashed a 'please don't leave me' to his friend and she smiled, "Thanks Stoick, I guess I can stay a little longer. I'll just call my mom so she doesn't worry."

When she was out of earshot, Stoick turned to his son. "Nice girl, Astrid. Responsible, too. How's school been? Make any new friends?"

Hiccup fidgeted with the hem of his shirt and prayed Astrid wouldn't be on the phone long, "Ah, friends, yes... yes I have. A guy named Aster in my art class; he's from Australia and paints watercolors. Really nice guy, do anything for anyone."

The big man patted his son on the back, "Good for you! Ye need to let yer guard down more often, let people get to know ye better."

Thankfully Astrid returned to the room then, and Hiccup sighed a tiny prayer of relief. Dinner wasn't too bad with Astrid keeping his father entertained with stories of Snotlout and the twins' latest antics, and by the time she was ready to leave, they were all yawning for sleep. Hiccup walked his friend to the door and gave her a hug.

"Thanks for everything Astrid, I mean it."

She squeezed him tightly in return and whispered, "Anytime. Just say goodnight to Loverboy and we'll call it even." Astrid kissed her friend's scarlet cheek then jogged through the falling snow to her car.

Stoick chuckled as his blushing son closed the door and hurried upstairs with a quick "Night, dad!" and shook his head. Those two. When are they going to admit they have feelings for each other?

Jack was in the middle of brushing his teeth when the familiar ringtone came through his phone. " 'Iccup!" Opening the text, Jack's blue eyes softened at the sweet message from his boyfriend.

-Hey Snowflake, did I wake you up?

Still with his toothbrush hanging out of his mouth, Jack typed a reply. -No, but I can't imagine anything nicer than waking up to you.

-Aww, you're making me blush over here. Good thing it's dark. Did you get home yet?

As much as he wanted to reply, the building amount of mint flavored spit in his mouth wasn't going to wait. Rinsing quickly, Jack hopped into bed and clicked off the light.  
-Sorry, I was brushing my teeth. Yeah, I'm home with my mom and Emma.

-I bet they were happy to see you. I know my dad was.

-Hey Hic? I told them about us, I hope that was ok? Maybe I should have asked you first?

A few seconds of eternity passed before a new message came through, -How did it go?"

-Great actually. Mom wants to meet you and Emma threatened to buy mistletoe for Christmas.

-Hmm, sounds like a certain someone I know...

-Hey, she learned from the best! Are you going to tell your dad?

Another long pause. -Not right now. He's still pushing me to date Astrid and Yule is not his best time of year.

Jack could almost see the sad, pained look on his boyfriend's face at the thought of his father, and wanted nothing more than to be able to hold him. -It's okay, Hic, I'm not pushing you. At least you can talk to Astrid if you need to.

-Yeah, she's really great. I'm sorry Jack, but I'm going to faceplant into my phone if I don't go to sleep. Can I say goodnight?

Jack smiled and blew a kiss towards the phone, -XOXO

-XOXO to you too.

December 21st

As Yule drew nearer, the Haddock household became more somber, with the only life seemingly coming from Stoick's oldest friend Gobber. The cheery Viking-esque  
man always made a point of not letting his friends stay gloomy during the holiday, and this time proved no exception. The familiar crunch of chained tires sounded in the driveway and Hiccup got up to answer the door.

"Oh my gods. Gobber, what is that?"

The blond man waved what remained of his left arm and a loud jangling noise filled the house; his interchangeable prosthetic was now covered in little multicolored bells. "It's a Jingle-Hand! Not bad eh?"

Hiccup shook his head and closed the door after his friend. Hearing a loud groan and a laugh come from the kitchen told him that his father had been cheered up for the present. When it came to Viking ridiculousness, what one of those two didn't think up the other invariably would. The only other consolation for this miserable holiday, was knowing Toothless would be coming over soon. Hiccup's absolute, best friend in the whole world, was a few months younger than him, though taller with considerably more muscles accentuated by deeply tan skin, long shiny black hair, almost impossibly pale green eyes, and false teeth. Hiccup tried not to chuckle to himself at the memory of the day his best friend lost all four of his upper front teeth in one leap...

They had only been about ten at the time and the idiot had been playing 'dragon' by repeatedly jumping off the roof of the small garage behind his house.

"Come on Hiccup! It's fun, you can really fly from up here."

The skinny freckled brunet crossed his arms and stayed where he was on the swing-set. "Ah, no thanks. I like flying down here. Nate! Stop it already, you're gonna fall!"

The other boy continued jumping up and down on the garage roof and stuck his tongue out. "Scaredy Dragon!"

Unbeknownst to them, all that jumping had slowly been loosening the bolt holding the old-fashioned, flip up garage door closed, and at the precise moment the boy leapt into the void, the door sprang up and connected sickeningly with his face. Hiccup cringed with each rolling thump as his friend fell to the ground, and cautiously crept nearer to him.

"Are you ok?"

A very distorted mumble came from the boy and he started screaming. "Get my mom!"

A quick flash of blood was all it took for the brunet to race into the house where the boy's mother was talking with a small older woman.

"Nate broke his face and there's blood everywhere and he's dying all over the place!"

Nora Fury sprang from her seat and called for Hiccup to stay where he was before hurrying outside, and all too soon loading her screaming son into the car and racing out of the driveway. Hiccup could not remember ever being more scared in his life. Not just for his friend; but for being left alone with someone he didn't know, a mile away from his own home until either Mrs. Fury returned or his father came to pick him up. The small boy sat miserably in the corner of the kitchen silently staring at the floor, not noticing when the old lady tried to get him to eat something or patted his head comfortingly.

At six o'clock Stoick's pickup truck swerved into the drive and the old woman went out to talk to him. A few minutes later, Hiccup found himself looking into his father's eyes as he knelt on the kitchen tiles to his son's level. "Hikke, it's time to go now. Gothi says ye didn't eat anything today, so why don't we go get some sandwiches?"

Wide green eyes filled with held back tears and the boy launched himself into his father's arms and wailed. "I can't eat if Nate's dead!"

Completely at a loss for what to do, Stoick carefully patted his son's tiny back with one oversized hand. "Er, I don't think he's dead, Hikke. He's probably just at the hospital."

The small boy's tears abated into his signature hiccups and he wiped a green sleeve across his nose, "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure Nora will call me when they get home. You have to eat something tonight, even half a sandwich, deal?"

The little brunet sighed in resignation, "Deal."

The next day Stoick again dropped Hiccup off at his friend's house before going to work, and once inside, Nora gave him a hug. "Thank you for being so brave Hikke, you really helped yesterday. Do you think you can be brave for Nathaniel again today?"

Hiccup drew himself up and nodded, "I'm a Viking, I can do anything."

Nora chuckled and retrieved a pint of ice cream from the freezer and two spoons. "Do you think you can help him eat this?"

The boy's green eyes widened and he nodded again, taking the things and making his way to the front room. It was slightly difficult to see since the drapes were pulled, but he could just make out a huddled figure perched on the back of the couch.

"Hey Bud, what happened?"

A groggy head lifted a little and the other boy slid down the couch. "Roft ny teeff."

Hiccup handed him a spoon before inquiring, "What?"

Puffy green eyes rolled and the boy grimaced painfully and yelled, "I RLOST NMY TEETH!"

The smaller boy clapped a hand to his own mouth and stared at his friend's bruised and stitched lips in shock. "Oh my gods! All of them?!"

The other boy shoved a large spoonful of ice cream into his sore mouth and rolled his eyes again, "No, dust the funt uns."

"Oh, well, I guess that's not so bad then. You'll just have to wait for the new ones to grow in again."

Nate crammed another chunk of numbing relief to his gums and growled, "Ithiot! Thosse were my bi' theeth, I won' 'et anymore."

"You mean you're going to be toothless the rest of your life?!"

"Prethy muth, the thoctor thaid I can have a parthial thomething when I'm not thore anymore."

The brunet sniggered, "You mean like old man teeth?"

Nathaniel glared back at him, "No! Ith not ALL of them, dust in the funt."

"Well let's just hope you get new teeth before school starts again, or I won't be the only one calling you Toothless."

Toxic green eyes narrowed threateningly, "You wouth'nt thare!"

Back in the present, Hiccup was pulled from his thoughts by a knock on the door and someone with pale green eyes blowing a raspberry through the window. A hand was pulling said boy away by one ear when the door opened. "Hi, Mrs. Fury. Dad and Gobber are in the kitchen."

Nora gave her grinning son one last glare before joining her friends. "Thank you Hikke, you're always so polite."

Hiccup turned to his friend. "Hey Bud, how've you been?"

"You mean since you called yesterday? Well, I've been flying all over the northern hemisphere trying to find the perfect present for my best friend. You?"

The brunet's mind went instantly to Jack, but he pushed the thoughts back for the moment; _not right now..._ "Just getting back into the old routine. I'm really glad you're here, Bud."

Nate caught the weary sigh and threw his arm around his friend's shoulder. "Anytime, Fishbone."

The crooked grin he'd hoped to see spread across the freckle covered face, "Oh, is that so, _Toothless_?"

The taller boy stuck his tongue out, taking his teeth with it. Hiccup laughed and waved a hand in his friend's direction, "What? Ew! Toothless!"

Nate just laughed and rolled his eyes. Throwing an arm around each other's shoulders, the two friends joined the party in the kitchen.

 **A/N: Please R &R if you liked it, and don't forget to Story Follow for updates.**


	3. Chapter 3 - Having words

**Notes:**

 **This chapter contains arguments.**

 **Jack's ringtone is Little Jack Frost by Kate Rusby.**

December 22nd

Hiccup was lying on the floor of Toothless's room, drawing, while the other boy sprawled on his bed reading a comic book. Thumbing quickly through a few pages, he huffed and tossed the book aside. "Why does the dragon always have to be the villain?"

Hiccup thought briefly before shrugging. "Beats me. I always thought they'd make loyal friends personally."

"Think I could be a dragon?"

"Sure; you'd be a Night Fury. Those are the best kind."

"Hmmm, Toothless the Night Fury... I like it! What would you-"

He was interrupted by Hiccup's phone playing Little Jack Frost, and a huge grin spreading across his face as he hurried to answer it. "Hey Frosty!... I'm thirty miles away, I can't help it if you're bored. Why don't you go pick on the Easter Kangaroo, that always cheers you up... I know, I don't want to wait a whole month either... Tell you what, I'll come down for a couple days after New Year's. So that's only two weeks... Okay. Say hi to everybody for me... I love you too... Bye."

Hiccup closed his phone and looked up at the smirk on his friend's face. "What are you looking at?"

Toothless grinned even wider and began teasing in a sing-song voice, "The Viking's got a girlfriend!"

"I do not!"

"You said I love yooooou!"

"Shut uuuuuuuup!"

"Not until you tell meeeee! Come on, what's her name?"

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Jack."

Toothless nodded, his curiosity instantly piqued. "Hmm, sounds like one of those artsy types, or a jock like Astrid. How long have you been together?"

"A little over a year."

Toothless put on an expression of exaggerated shock, causing Hiccup to roll his eyes. "Wow! I didn't know you could keep a secret that long!"

"Ha ha. I can when it's important."

Toothless leaned his head to one side and stared, he was starting to feel confused by Hiccup's indirectness. "I'm sure having a girlfriend is important to you, but why would it need to be a secret?"

Hiccup started fiddling with the hem of the bedspread, "Promise you won't tell, and you won't freak out."

Toothless crossed his heart, and Hiccup took a deep breath. "Jack isn't my girlfriend, he's my boyfriend."

"Okay, so? Is he cute?"

"Gods yes! Sweet smile, snowy white hair, ice blue eyes..."

"Easy dude, you're gonna start drooling on my carpet. Are you gonna tell your dad?"

Hiccup sat up and hugged his knees close to his chest. "Do you think I should?"

"I dunno, it's up to you."

"Thank you for nothing, you useless reptile."

"Look," Toothless rolled onto his stomach so he could reach the stack of comics on his nightstand. "You either tell him or you don't. If you do he'll probably hit the roof, if you don't you keep living with secrets. It kind of is what it is."

Hiccup sighed and laid back to stare at the ceiling. "Nothing happens in my life without my dad finding out eventually. I might as well tell him myself."

Toothless picked a new comic book and continued reading, "Well, good luck either way, and if you need anything, you know where I am."

"Thanks Bud."

As soon as he stepped through the door, Stoick knew something was wrong. He might not be the most observant person in the world, but over the years he had come to notice a few things. The smell of burning food was definitely one of them. After removing his coat and boots, Stoick followed his nose to the kitchen where he found his son nervously rattling pots and pans.

"Hikke?"

Hiccup jumped slightly, but managed not to make any more mistakes to his recipe. "Oh hey dad. How was work?"

"Fine. Is something bothering ye?"

 _Oh, great..._ "Why would you think that."

"Ye only burn yer cooking when yer upset. So come on, out with it."

"After dinner. I'm not up to it right now."

Stoick nodded and headed to the bathroom to wash up. "Alright, but I expect a full explanation later."

Dinner was fairly silent aside from Stoick's few attempts at casual conversation, and both Haddocks were relieved when the meal was over. Hiccup began busily clearing away the dishes but was stopped by his father.

"Leave those, I'll get them later. We need to talk."

Hiccup followed meekly to the living room where Stoick settled himself into his armchair, (which always reminded Hiccup of a Viking chief sitting in judgment) while he sat on the couch. Hiccup nervously started fiddling with his shirt hem and Stoick began his interrogation.

"Did ye fight with Astrid?"

Hiccup looked up, slightly confused. "What? No, we never fight."

"Good, I was hoping ye two would be getting a little closer since ye've been on yer own."

"Uh, closer? H-how so?"

Stoick waved his hand vaguely in the air, "Ye know, closer romantically. Ye've been friends for years so I thought ye'd naturally end up together."

Hiccup looked down at his hands, "No, we're um, we're just friends. I don't think that's ever going to happen between us."

"Maybe ye just need to make the first move."

"Uh, no. I don't think that would change anything."

"Sure it will."

"No, I'm very extra sure that it won't."

"Hikke, asking a girl out isn't that difficult."

"It is when you don't want to!"

Stoick stared blankly as Hiccup clenched fistfuls of shirt and his cheeks reddened. "Well, erm, that's alright Hikke. Being a bachelor and focusing on yer work is a good thing too, Gobber's never been married and he's perfectly happy with his life."

Hiccup blew out a frustrated sigh from his nose, "That's not... I know you want me to have what you and mom had. Love, a home, a family, someone to spend my life with. I want that too, but it won't be with Astrid or any other girl. I... I'm interested in guys."

Stoick's face creased into a deep frown, "Did ye get that idea from that school? I knew it was a mistake for ye to go there."

A tight feeling was building up in Hiccup's chest that made breathing difficult. "What?! I didn't get the "Idea" from anywhere. It's just part of who I am, I'm no different than you or anyone else."

Frustration rushed through Stoick's massive frame and he felt his temper slipping farther away. "It is not part of who ye are! I'm yer father, I know ye better than anyone and ye never said anything before now."

"I didn't say anything because I knew you'd react like this! I'm being completely honest; I've felt this way for years but only started to understand it since I've been at college."

"Well I'm not paying a penny more until ye stop all this nonsense and go ask Astrid on a date! I'm sure all ye need is to be in a steady relationship to feel settled."

"I'm already in a relationship!"

"Not while you're under my roof!"

Hiccup strode angrily from the room and hurried to put his coat on, and Stoick quickly rose to follow him. "Where are ye going?"

"Home."

"What do ye mean 'home'? Ye are home."

After making sure he had his wallet, Hiccup purposefully hung his house key on the rack by the door and leveled one last tear filled look at his father.

"Home is where people love you."

Stoick didn't even notice the biting wind swirling around him as he watched his only son run into the freezing night. The frightened chill of making the biggest mistake of his life, was much worse.

Hiccup roughly brushed away cold tears as he walked the mile to Toothless's house in the woody area of north Berk. His phone started ringing and he listened to his father's ringtone until he couldn't stand it any longer and turned off the phone completely. The house was dark when he arrived, so Hiccup made his way to the back and threw a snowball at his friend's window. Three slushy thuds later the window opened suddenly and the boy inside was met with a face full of snow.

"Hey! What gives?! Hiccup? What are you doing here?! It's almost midnight!"

Hiccup wiped an already soaked sleeve across his nose. "Can I crash for a couple hours?"

"Yeah, I'll let you in. What happened?"

"I told him."

"He hit the roof."

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry. I'll be right down."

Nathaniel's mother was only a little surprised to see Hikke following her son down the stairs the next morning. She knew his relationship with his father was sometimes strained and he usually came to his best friend after they'd had a fight. Toothless was getting out milk and cereal while Hiccup searched the cupboard for two bowls when the kitchen phone rang. Mrs. Fury answered it.

"Hello? Nora speaking... Good morning Stoick, yes he's here..."

She turned away from the phone momentarily, "Hikke, you're father wants to speak to you."

Hiccup smiled tightly, "If it's all the same to you Mrs. Fury, I'd rather not talk to him."

She frowned sadly and returned the phone to her ear. "I'm sorry Stoick, he says he doesn't want to talk right now... Yes of course I will... You too. Goodbye."

After making herself a cup of tea, Nora joined the two boys at the table. "Did you have words with your father, Hikke?"

"You could say that."

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No ma'am, not this time."

Toothless gently nudged his friend's shoulder, "You can tell her if you want, she'd be ok with it."

"How do you know?"

Toothless gave him a look that said 'I know you can figure this out'.

Hiccup shook his head in confusion.

Toothless gave an exasperated huff and pointed at Hiccup then to himself.

Hiccup's eyebrows shot up and disappeared behind his bangs as he pointed to his friend.

Toothless grinned and nodded.

Nora shook her head and chuckled at the boys' secret form of communication. "Everything good now?"

Hiccup looked once more at his friend's encouraging smile and nodded, "Yeah I, I think so. Um, so, I, uh..."

Toothless rolled his eyes and groaned, "Oh good grief! Hikke had to tell his dad what I had to tell you last year. Stoick didn't take it well and they had a fight."

"Ohhh. I'm sorry dear, I'm sure he'll come around eventually. Have you met any nice boys at school?"

Still a little dazed, Hiccup tried to refocus his thoughts enough to make a coherent sentence. "Uh yes, I have actually. My boyfriend and I have been together for a year."

"That's wonderful! Nathaniel's gone out a few times but just hasn't found the right one yet."

Hiccup tried not to laugh at the embarrassment rising on his friend's cheeks, "MOM!"

Nora feigned innocence and resumed sipping her tea, "I just tell it like it is."

Toothless washed the breakfast dishes while Hiccup stepped outside to check his phone. There were about ten texts and voicemails from Jack so he decided to call him instead of going through them all.

"HICCUP! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!"

"I'm sorry, I had a rough night."

"What happened?"

Hiccup sighed and watched his breath form a little cloud of frozen steam. "I had a fight with my dad. I left around midnight and stayed with a friend."

"Was it that bad?"

"Yeah. It was. So how would you like to see me two weeks early? I can be there in about an hour."

"I'd love to see you, but don't you need to talk to your dad first?"

"Not unless he's miraculously changed his mind somehow. I'll check when I go to pick up my stuff, but I'm not expecting much."

"Ok, well, let me know when you're getting here and I'll pick you up. Do you need a place to stay?"

Hiccup smacked a cold hand to his forehead and winced. "Oh shite! I completely forgot school was closed. I'll stay with my cousin or get a hotel room."

"You can stay with me you know. The others won't mind."

"Jack, there's already five people in that place."

"So what, make it an even six. Come on Hic, please."

Aww, how could he resist that pleading voice? "Ok. I'll text you when I get on the bus."

"I love you."

"I love you too, Jack."

Toothless was drying his hands when Hiccup came back in. "Are you going home now?" Hiccup shook his head, "I'm catching the bus to Burgess. Jack's letting me stay with him until I find something else."

"Do you want me to drive you to the station?"

"Yeah, thanks, Bud. I just need to pick up a few things at my house first."

Hiccup shook the doorknob of his house and groaned, "I left my key in there last night."

Toothless casually brushed him aside, "I got this." Taking something shiny from his leather jacket, the boy jiggled it in the lock momentarily and opened the door.

"Should I even ask?"

"Probably not. Now let's get your stuff and get out of here."

Hiccup ran upstairs to his room and began tossing clothes into a duffle bag. He stopped abruptly as he caught sight of the small stuffed dragon toy his mother had made for him; taking that meant no turning back. With a deep breath he placed it in the bag and closed the zipper behind it. Muffled voices met Hiccup's ears as he made his way down the stairs and he groaned inwardly when he saw his father talking to Toothless.

"I forgot my lunch. Hikke, where are ye going? We need to talk."

Hiccup tightened his grip on the duffle strap. "Have you changed your mind?"

"No. I was hoping ye'd calmed down enough to see sense."

"Well, I haven't."

Hiccup moved to leave, but Stoick's giant frame easily blocked the doorway. "Hikke, you're not thinking properly right now. I'm sure we can find ye some help to fix all this."

A steady hazel stare met one of concerned, but equally stubborn, grey. "There's nothing to fix. Either take me the way I am or don't take me at all."

"The way ye are isn't natural!"

Toothless suddenly growled and stood protectively in front of Hiccup, "Let. Us. Out."

Stoick gave him a hard stare, "Move aside lad, this isn't yer fight."

"You made it my fight when you said we weren't natural. Now let us out."

Hiccup tried to slip past his father and pull his seething friend with him, "Come on Bud, this isn't worth you getting in trouble."

"But he said-"

"I know, just let it go."

Stoick narrowed his eyes at Toothless, "What do ye mean 'we'? Yer not mixed up too are ye?"

Hiccup struggled to hold his irate friend back as he grew even more furious. "Mixed up?! What the-! What do you think we are, nutcases?!"

"Nathaniel Fury! I'm calling yer mother, I think she needs to get ye some help as well."

"You do that! I'm sure she'll be thrilled to hear you want to lock your son up for loving someone!"

Stoick was too angry to protest as Hiccup finally managed to drag his friend to the car and throw his duffle bag into the back seat. Stoick made one last attempt to salvage the situation by shouting, "I'll be picking ye up after ye feel calmer, Hikke, I do know where Nathaniel lives."

Toothless yelled back at him as he savagely started the car, "Well good luck with that!" Stepping heavily on the gas, he sped out of the driveway, turning south.

"Uh, Bud? The bus station is that way."

"I'm driving you to Burgess. I need the drive and you're getting there in one piece."

"Not if you don't slow down!"

The car slowed to an even pace and Hiccup closed his eyes, trying to focus on the soothing motion of the car.

Toothless had regained some of his temper by this time, and he sighed, "Why didn't you tell me it was that bad?"

"Wouldn't have made any difference. What do you think your mom will say?"

"That she supports me and it's none of his damn business."

"Heh, yeah she's pretty cool."

Toothless grinned, "Thanks. I'd like to meet your boyfriend if that's ok? Gotta make sure he's good enough for my best friend."

Having Toothless beside him helped Hiccup feel able to smile back. "Sure Bud, you'll like him. Which reminds me, I need to tell him when we're getting there. And by the speed you're still going it won't be long."

Stoick grumbled to himself as he parked his car at work for the second time that morning; Nora Fury was going to get an earful when he got home that night. Once inside, he shrugged out of his coat and stuffed his lunch into the mini fridge in the back room of Gobber's auto repair shop. The big blond man looked up from a black Buick as he heard his friend slam the door.

"What's eatin' ye?"

"Not talking about it."

"Ah, Hikke again."

"I said I'm not talking about it!"

Gobber waved a wrench around with his good hand. "Who's talking? Just don't break any doors while yer not talking and we'll be fine."

Stoick grumbled some more under his breath as he opened the hood of a beat up Chevy. "Not mixed up. Nutcase. Wait till I tell Nora. Good. Luck. With. That!"

"Ohohoho! Ye had Nate Fury and Hikke at the same time? No wonder yer in a bad mood."

"Gobber!"

The blond man pointed a screwdriver this time, first wagging it accusingly at his friend, then towards the office. "Look, yer no use to me like this, so why don't ye just call Nora now and get it over with."

"Alright I will!"

Stoick stormed into the small office, again slamming the door behind him, and dialed the number.

"Hello?"

"Nora, it's Stoick."

"The boy's aren't here right now, is something wrong?"

Hearing the woman's calming voice helped Stoick breathe easier, to regain some of his emotional footing. "I called to talk to ye. Hikke's... a little confused and I think Nathaniel might be as well."

"Oh, we had a talk about that this morning. They're not confused, Stoick."

"Maybe ye don't understand, Hikke refuses to even try going out with Astrid, he thinks- he thinks he likes boys."

"Yes I know, he told me. Nathaniel is the same way. It's really not an issue."

Stoick felt his temper flare up again, but was in no mood to stop it. "Not an issue?! Nora, they need to be treated with therapy of some sort!"

" **WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?!** You're the one who needs therapy, Stoick. You need to come out of that Viking world of yours and join the twenty-first century!"

"Ye can't mean that you approve."

The tone with which Nora replied left no room for any doubt. "You bet your arse I approve! I love my son and I'm proud of his courage for being himself despite what others might think of him, and I sincerely hope you can do the same for Hikke."

"I do love my son, I want him to have the best life possible, that's why I want him to get help. Please let me know when he gets there so I can pick him up."

"If he wants to go home he can make that choice himself. Let me talk to Gobber for a minute."

Stoick stomped out of the office and began gathering his tools, "Nora wants a word with ye."

Gobber wiped his hands on a shop rag before entering the office and quietly closing the door. No sound came from the little room, and Gobber was gone so long, Stoick wondered if he had gone to sleep. Eventually the door opened and Gobber silently went back to working on the Buick. Stoick roughly pulled off a distributor cap as he grumbled, "I suppose Nora told ye everything."

His question was met by silence. "Well?"

"Not now Stoick. Please. We can talk about it later."

For the first time in a long time, Stoick Haddock was speechless. Gobber never said please unless it was particularly important. An uncomfortable silence hung between the normally boisterous friends for the rest of the day.

When they reached Burgess, Toothless pulled up to the house he'd been directed to, and turned off the car. Hiccup barely had time to undo his seat belt before the door was flung open and he found himself being smothered in kisses.

"Are you ok?! You scared the heck out of me!" Jack started melting Hiccup into a longer kiss until he heard a cough and looked up at a smirking black haired boy. "Um, I can leave if you want me to."

Jack blushed and let Hiccup get out of the car. "Jack this is Nate. Nate, Jack."

Toothless leaned casually on the top of the car and waved, "Hey. So you're the boyfriend, huh?"

"Nate's pretty protective of me for some reason. He's Toothless the Night Fury! Mighty guard dragon of the scrawniest Viking Berk has ever seen. And he's done a pretty good job so far."

Jack chuckled and shook the boy's hand, "My friend Aster's the same way; except he's the Easter Bunny." Toothless snorted, "The Easter Bunny? What is he, all cute and fluffy or something?"

"Why don't you come find out."

Hiccup gave his boyfriend a suspicious look, "What are you up to?"

"What makes you think I'm up to anything?"

Hiccup rolled his eyes and turned to Toothless, "Old Frosty here thinks he can get around me so easily."

Jack started lightly biting Hiccup's ear, making him roll his eyes for an entirely different reason. "Aaannnd he's usually right! Ok Jack that's enough for now ohpleasestop!" Jack planted one last kiss on Hiccup's ear before opening the door, "Ah, you're no fun."

Leading a red faced Hiccup and smirking Toothless through the house, Jack began introducing his friends. "Nate, these are my housemates; Tooth, Sandy, and North. Guys, this is Hiccup's friend Nate Fury."

Toothless smiled and shook everyone's hands before turning to Jack, "Where's the Easter Bunny?"

"Somebody talkin' about me?"

Toothless spun around and nearly collided with someone behind him, who caught him in strong tattooed arms and blinked down at him in surprise. "Ya alright there mate?"

Spring green eyes met pale and both stared a moment too long before jumping apart. Toothless roughly cleared his throat, "Ah, yeah, thanks. Y-you're Aster right?"

The other boy nodded, "Yeah. Well, Ethan Aster."

"Nate, er, Nathan Fury."

Both boys stood awkwardly trying not to stare at each other until Tooth broke the tension by announcing that lunch was ready. Toothless was put at ease by the friendly atmosphere around the table and familiar manner with which he was included in the conversations. He spent half of the meal watching Hiccup interact with his boyfriend, and came to the conclusion that Jack was a pretty good guy and fully Dragon Approved. The other half of his time was occupied by stealing quick glances at a certain tattooed someone when he thought he wasn't looking.

 _I wonder if those tatts- Nathaniel Fury get your mind from under that guy's shirt! You can't just think about random people like that!_

Across the table, Aster was having a similar internal dialogue.

 _Oh crikey, why did the little Viking have to bring someone so gorgeous- Don't you even think about it! He just drove his friend down here and he'll be gone in a few hours. No more, no less, no chance._

This last thought was so depressing even Tooth noticed. She nudged him gently, whispering, "What's the matter, Bunny? You look awful."

"I'm alright, just got something on my mind. Thanks anyway." She let it go but decided to keep an eye on him for a while.

After lunch, a unanimous decision was made to go for a walk around Burgess and do some last minute holiday shopping. Aster trailed at the end of the group, lost in his thoughts until Tooth noticed his absence and dropped back. "Bunny, if you don't feel well I can take you home."

"I told ya before I'm fine, so please leave me alone!"

A hurt expression crossed the girl's face and Aster sighed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap at ya, I just... I'm sure I'll be alright tomorrow. Now go on, ya don't want to miss out on yer shopping."

Tooth rubbed his arm comfortingly before rejoining the main group. At one point, Hiccup and Toothless broke away to go into a bookshop and Tooth took the opportunity to speak to Jack. "Do you know what's bothering Bunny? He's been awfully quiet since lunch and he almost bit my head off when I asked him about it."

Jack glanced back to see Aster's longing expression being directed towards the bookstore and grinned. "I think I have a pretty good idea. Leave it to me, he'll be back to his usual loudmouth self in no time."

Tooth watched the white haired boy casually stoop to the ground before approaching his friend. "Oh Jack, what are you up to?"

Aster was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he failed to notice Jack sneaking up on him until a cold handful of snow was stuffed down the back of his collar.

"WHAT THE BLOODY-?! What was that for?!"

"Man, Tooth was right, you are out of it. I never get to catch you off guard."

"Rack off ya bloody show pony!"

"Ooo, the Easter Bunny swearing? Must be serious."

"What it is, is none of your business!"

"I could make it my business, since I already know what it is."

"Ya do not!"

"Then why did you tell Hiccup's friend your first name? You know, the one never to be mentioned on pain of a boomerang attack? You like him."

Aster crossed his arms and looked away. "So what? I'll probably never see him again, and the really cute guys are always straight."

"He says he's not."

"Well," Aster waved his arms weakly, searching for another excuse. "Being that good looking he can't be single."

Jack grinned before waving to the two boys exiting the bookshop. "Only one way to find out. Hey, Nate!"

Aster tugged on Jack's coat and began rambling in panic, "Crikey! Jack, I can't-" He was struck speechless by the sight of inquisitive pale green eyes turning in his direction before quickly focusing on his mischievous friend.

"You need something?"

Jack shook his head, "Not me. Aster needs a gift for a friend out of town and the rest of us are stumped for ideas. Would you mind giving him a hand?"

The boy's tan cheeks turned slightly pink (just from the cold mind you) and he nodded. Hiccup narrowed his eyes as Jack pulled him back towards the others, "Did you just-" Cold lips distracted him again and he immediately lost his train of thought. "Oh never mind."

Toothless tried to slow his heart down as he walked beside Aster. "So, uh, what are you looking for?"

Aster had to remember what Jack had said before answering. "Er... I'm not really sure, it's sort of for a friend of a friend actually."

"Ok, well, let's go at this logically. Male or female?"

"Male."

"Age?"

"About twenty, I think."

"Main interests?"

"Er, I'm not sure. I don't know him all that well."

Toothless hmmm'd and buried his nose in his scarf. Aster had to look away to avoid smiling like an idiot at the adorable look of concentration on the other boy's face.  
"So, basic twenty year old guy present. Cars, girls, or alcohol."

"Is that what you'd want?"

"Heck no. I mean, cars are ok but I like motorcycles better, and the other two are just aren't my thing."

"Well I wouldn't know which end of a beer can was up, so... motorcycles. Anything else?"

"How about you put something in; what would you want?"

"Something like a paint set or a new tattoo. I'm kind of alternative."

Toothless chuckled, "No more alternative than a queer, biracial, motorcycle-dragon-comic book enthusiast. I'm pretty far out for a place like Berk."

Aster smiled, "Doesn't sound far out to me." Realizing he was probably staring, he coughed and changed the subject. "So... motorcycles, comic books, dragons, paint sets, and tattoos. Sounds like a good start."

"Yeah, it-"

The boy was cut off by a sudden gust of wind coming up from behind which caused him to wobble momentarily before pitching dangerously towards the road. Aster pulled him roughly back just as a large truck whizzed by blaring its horn. The others turned in time to see what was happening and Hiccup ran back to help his friend.

"Toothless! Are you okay, Bud?!"

Toothless looked up dizzily from his position on top of Aster where they had fallen. "Uhhh, I think so."

Aster grunted slightly causing Toothless to blush scarlet and roll quickly to his knees before standing up, then held out a shaky hand to the Australian and helped him stand, "I am so sorry! You must be really sick of catching me like that."

Aster blushed a little himself and shook his head, "Nothing to be sorry about. That was a nasty tumble, are ya alright?"

"I have a problem balancing sometimes, it's no big deal."

Once Hiccup was satisfied his friend wasn't going to spontaneously die, he rejoined the others. Aster walked a little closer than before (just in case Nate decided to trip again of course), and asked the question currently pressing on his mind. "Er, what exactly is your name, mate? I've heard Nathan, Nate, and Toothless, and I don't know which one to use."

The other boy rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, "Toothless is Hiccup's nickname for me, long story, don't ask. My mom calls me Nathaniel, and pretty much everyone else calls me Nate. You can, um, you can call me Nathan if you want."

"Nathan it is then. So, motorcycles, ya got one?"

"I wish. Still saving up, but I'm a little over half way there. You?"

"I do. Well, I had to leave it in Warren when I came here, but it's still mine." The boys quickly fell into a lively discussion about engine parts, speed, and the feeling of freedom that was almost like flying.

Gobber looked up at the clock over the office and, for the seventh time that day, wished it would somehow stop moving. After putting his tools away, he heaved a sigh of resignation.

"You want to get a drink?"

"Are we going to be talking about Hikke?"

"Yes."

"Then we'll go to my place, I don't want there to be talk about him any more than necessary."

On reaching the Haddock house, Stoick fixed two plates of food while Gobber searched the pantry for something to drink, though he was surprised when he saw the bottle brought to the table. "Mead? Ye went for the strong stuff, then?"

Gobber nodded stiffly as he filled two small glasses. "I need to the courage to say what I have to say, or not remember it tomorrow."

"That doesn't sound good. I know it's a bit of a shock, but I didn't think ye'd be this unnerved by Hikke's problem."

A knot was forming in Gobber's stomach, though he tried to ignore it. "That's not what bothered me. I understand ye have some pretty strong opinions on what ye want to do with him?"

"I think he's been confused by things he's exposed to at school and that some kind of therapy could help. I just want him to have a normal healthy life with as few problems as possible."

"I think we all wish for that. But have you asked Hikke what he wants?"

Though the food he'd made was adequate, Stoick knew Hikke would have done better. "He says he wants to have that life; a family, a home, but how can he if he keeps on like this? I've tried encouraging him to date Astrid, but he refused to even try."

"How do ye know he can't have that good life with another man? Have ye even met any people like that, Stoick?"

"No I haven't, but I do know that families need both a mother and a father to thrive. Odin knows Hikke needed his mother all these years and I wasn't enough to take her place."

Gobber sipped his drink reflectively while he decided his next move. "Do ye, erm... do ye hate those kinds of people, or do ye just think they're a bit strange?"

Stoick sighed heavily and tiredly rubbed a hand over his eyes. "I don't hate anyone Gobber; ye know that. I just can't see how that lifestyle could be anything other than poor judgment or mental illness. I understand the world one way and that just doesn't fit."

"What if it did fit? What if Hikke could have that wonderful life the way he wants it? Would ye be willing to let him?"

"I don't know. There's a lot of 'what ifs' and I'm not convinced they can be overcome. Why are ye on Nora's side in this? I always thought ye backed me up to the hilt in everything."

The blond man chuckled softly, "I'm not on anyone's side. I just want this to end with as little pain as possible. Maybe I'm going soft in my old age, but this is important."

"Why? Why is convincing me I'm wrong so important to everyone all of a sudden?"

Stoick was surprised by the intensity of Gobber's light blue eyes when he spoke. "Because loving who ye love doesn't make a person any different than they were before they told ye. Hikke is still yer son, ye can't change him or protect him forever, ye can only try to help him do what he wants with his life, whatever that may be."

"Ye clearly have some strong opinions yerself."

"I know some people like Hikke. I've seen them go through things no one should, and come out stronger on the other side. Being different isn't a death sentence, Stoick. Hikke can have a good life the way he wants it, and I hope ye can learn to accept him for who he is."

For several minutes, the tense silence was filled only by the quiet scraping of cutlery against plates. Stoick drummed his fingers on the table thoughtfully before speaking again.

"Alright. I'm far from convinced, but I've learned to trust yer judgment over the years. I'll give ye the chance to prove me wrong."

Gobber felt some of the tension drain out of him, and he breathed a silent prayer of thanks to the gods. "Thank you. Now drink up, we don't want this mead to go off."

Toothless thought about Aster, or Ethan as he wanted to be called, on his entire drive home that evening, and was still thinking when his mother met him at the door.

"Nathaniel Fury, where have you been?" Despite being nineteen years old, and six foot of lean muscle, Nora's stern gaze was enough to make the boy feel like a very small child.

"Ohhh, right. Um, I drove Hikke down to Burgess, he's staying with his boyfriend for a while."

"Does Stoick know?"

"Mom, he's twenty, he hardly needs permission for anything. Besides, the guy is really nice and I know he'll take good care of him."

Nora knew her son was extremely protective of his best friend and rarely trusted anyone. "Well your word good is enough for me. Did you like the city?"

The boy's pale green eyes lit up excitedly. "Yeah! It was great! There was a huge bookstore and a motorcycle shop and all these holiday decorations to look at and-"

Nora laughed and waved her hands, "Alright I get it, I'm glad you had fun. Now go wash your hands and I'll find you something to eat."

Taking the stairs two at a time, Toothless hurried to wash up. His mind was still on Ethan; his eyes, his voice, his safe, strong arms... Catching a glimpse of his pink cheeks in the mirror caused the boy to blush harder and grin helplessly at his reflection. Since it was so late, Toothless decided to put on his pajamas while he was upstairs and as he neared the kitchen again he could hear someone with a shaky voice talking to his mother.

"I honestly don't know how I managed it, Nora. The things ye told me this morning, I just... I was so afraid."

Toothless entered the kitchen and the person looked up with a tearstained face. "Gobber? Oh my gods, what's wrong?!"

Mrs. Fury set down a plate of sandwiches and an extra mug of tea. "He's just had a rough day, sweetie."

Gobber wiped his eyes and sighed, "It's alright Nora, I might as well tell him. After ye left with Hikke this morning, Stoick came storming into work, slamming doors and fuming about something or other. I heard him mention ye and suggested he call yer mother before he blew a gasket, and when he was finished, Nora wanted to speak to me. She... she told me about ye and Hikke and why Stoick was so angry. Ye may have wondered why yer mother was so supportive when ye came out to her, and it's because she's had a long time to get used to the idea. Nora's been my friend for a long time and she was the first person I came out to when I was about yer age."

Toothless looked at the man in amazement. "You're gay too?"

Gobber nodded, "Aye, there's not many people that know, but your mother has always been there for me when things got rough. The things she told me today though... Stoick's been my best friend since we were kids and I always thought he was an understanding man, but... Ye have yer mother to stand up for ye, but who does Hikke have? I couldn't stand by and not make some effort to help him, so I went over to Stoick's tonight and had a talk with him about Hikke. I swear I've been shaking in my socks the entire day, I don't know if I made any progress but I'm going to keep trying."

Toothless let out a long breath, "Wow. Did you, um, tell him about yourself?" Gobber shook his head firmly, "No. I'm not ready to see that look on his face. I'll tell him if I have to but not until I'm ready. Coming out is a lifelong process lad, yer stomach gets the same knots the hundredth time as it did the first."

Toothless smiled a little sadly, "Yeah. Well, I'm glad you trust me."

Further conversation was interrupted by the ringing telephone, Nora answered it and instantly stiffened. "Oh. Hello Stoick..." The other two held their breath and waited. "Hikke's not here. Nathaniel took him to his boyfriend this morning... No I won't tell you where he is, I don't think you need that information until you have the sense to use it. Nathaniel says he's perfectly safe and happy and I trust his judgment on this..." Nora was silent for a while and when she spoke again it was with some surprise. "Well, I accept your apology and I'm glad you have a chance of seeing a glimmer in the tunnel someday... I know, but don't worry about him, he's fine... Yes of course I can do that... Alright, Goodbye Stoick."

Nora hung up the phone and turned to the two expectant faces waiting for her.

"I don't know what you said to that man, Gobber, but for Hikke's sake keep it up. He actually apologized for yelling at everyone and not listening to Hikke's concerns with more consideration. He also said you were right to be angry this morning, Nathaniel, and he doesn't blame you for yelling at him, which I will overlook this time, and asked if I'd send you to check on Hikke to make sure he's alright. I didn't think you'd mind a weekly trip to Burgess judging by today's enthusiasm."

Toothless nearly jumped out of his chair in excitement, "Oh heck yes!" Gobber laughed along with Nora at the boy's reaction, "Well I guess everything turned out alright for now."

-

Once Hiccup had gotten back together with Jack and their friends, he felt like he was finally able to breathe. Not that he didn't like the friends he grew up with, but Berk had a rough, stifling atmosphere that translated to the people sometimes. The guys in Burgess were more... relaxed, open minded. Maybe he was just glad to be away from his dad, but Hiccup had seriously thought about moving to Burgess once he graduated; so suddenly finding himself not able to go home wasn't really the big shock it could have been.

After Toothless left with the assurance that his best friend was going to be alright, and a promise to check on him again next Saturday, his new housemates practically sat on him until he promised to stay with them as long as he needed to. After bidding the others goodnight, Hiccup crawled into his makeshift bed on the couch and breathed in the scent of Jack's peppermint shampoo still lingering on his borrowed pillow. Despite everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours, Hiccup felt like he was truly home.


	4. Chapter 4 - Family

**Ch. 4 Family**

December 24th

Christmas eve morning dawned grey and snowy, but the interior of one small house was filled with the color and laughter of six friends preparing for the holidays. Every year since high school, North had volunteered to be Santa Clause at the local children's home where he would hand out gifts as well as read stories and play with the kids untill they all fell asleep happy and he would start planning for next year. Sometimes one of the others would go with him if there was a particularly large number of kids, but for the most part, Christmas was North's holiday and you didn't mess with it unless you wanted to find an actual lump of coal in your sock drawer. (Guess who'd had the black socks to prove it...) Tooth, Sandy, and Aster had their own little ritual of watching old Christmas specials together on tv until they all fell asleep on the couch, only to be woken up by North banging through the door at midnight shouting "MERRY CHRISTMAS!"

Jack always spent the holidays with his family after a few days of shopping and recuperating from homework; but this year, he realized, would be his first Christmas with Hiccup and he wasn't exactly sure what to do. The others were busy trying to get North into his elaborate Santa Clause outfit, so he took the opportunity to speak to Hiccup alone in the kitchen. Taking out six cups, Jack plugged in the electric kettle and started searching for a box of instant cocoa. Hiccup wrinkled his nose and took a saucepan from the cupboard. "Let me make you some real hot chocolate."

Jack leaned on the counter to watch while his boyfriend placed the mugs in the sink and poured hot water over them to warm up before adding chocolate chips and milk to the saucepan.

"Is this one of those things your mom did?"

The brunet nodded as he looked for a spoon to stir with. "Yep. I've been using her recipe cards for so long I've got them memorized. Can you dry those mugs please? This is almost ready."

Jack grabbed a clean towel and began lining the warm mugs up next to the stove. "Hey, Hic? I'm supposed to be going home in a few hours but I don't want to just leave you after what happened yesterday, so I was wondering if you'd like to come with me and meet my mom and my sister. You don't have to; if you want to stay here I can take their presents over and come back and we can stay in with the others, or go to a movie, or something..."

His voice trailed off a little as Hiccup silently filled the mugs and set the pan to cool in the sink. After he dried his hands, Hiccup took a deep breath, "Well, if it's okay, I think I'd like to meet your family. We've been together for a year and I know I'm not going anywhere any time soon."

The look on Jack's face was brighter than all of North's tree lights put together and Hiccup found himself on the receiving end of a bear hug. "Do you have any idea how much I love you?! I'll call to double check that they're going to be home, then we'll go drink that hot chocolate you made before it gets cold."

Hiccup tried not to laugh as he listened to Jack talking excitedly with his sister on the phone, while he found a tray to carry the mugs. "Hey squirt! Are you guys gonna be home when I get there?... Well I just needed to be sure because I'm bringing a very special present with me... Noooo, I'm not telling you what it is... Ha, ha, ha, threats and bribes don't work through the phone. Just be ready to have some fun... Ha! Okay, tell mom I'll be there at three... I love you too, kiddo."

Jack pocketed his phone and took the small cocoa tray while Hiccup carried their two mugs. "Um, Jack? I don't have anything to take to your mom's. Should I, um, cook something? Or would that be wrong? Maybe I should get some flowers."

Jack gave his boyfriend a quick kiss to distract him from worrying and laughed. "Relax, Hic, I've got an idea that everyone will like. We just need to do a little last minute shopping."

-

When Emma had hung up with her brother, she went to the living room and flopped face-down on the couch. "Jack said to tell you he's coming at three. He also said he's bringing a really special present but OF COURSE he wouldn't tell me what it waaaaas! Ughhh! I could die from curiosity before he gets here!"

Helen was elbow deep in paper and bows that were spreading across the floor where she sat wrapping presents. "I hope not; if you died you'd never find out what the surprise is. It's only two more hours, Emma, I think you'll survive."

Two hours and ten minutes later Helen heard pounding feet as her daughter ran to answer the door, followed by a delighted shriek and her son's deep laughter. Going into the living room, she saw a tall boy about her son's age with reddish brown hair and gentle green eyes, laughing with her children. When he saw her, the boy smiled and held out his hand.

"Hello Mrs. Overland; I'm Hikke Haddock, it's very nice to meet you."

Helen completely ignored the boy's hand and instead gave him a tight hug. "I've been waiting so long to meet you! I don't think Jack has stopped talking about you for the last year."

Both boys blushed and Jack led the way into the kitchen with the shopping bag. "Okay! Let's get this stuff put away before it goes bad."

Emma pulled a package of hazelnut flour from the bag and read the label. "What's this for?"

Jack put a box of eggs in the fridge and lined up the other things on the counter. "Stuff for making cookies. Hiccup's going to teach you how to make some Nut- Nutop- um, Norwegian macaroons."

"Oooo, yummy! Do you want me to call you Hiccup or your regular name?"

The freckled brunet laughed. "Hiccup's fine; it's what my friends call me anyway. Do you have some baking pans?"

Emma rolled her eyes and slumped dramatically against the counter. "Only a hundred more than we'll ever need. Mom is always making something for bake sales and the seniors she works with. What kind do you want?"

Jack left the two cooks to their work and joined his mother in the living room. "Those two seem to be getting along great. I hope it's okay that I didn't give you a heads-up; Hiccup only came back yesterday."

Helen patted the seat next to her on the couch and Jack sat down. "I'm so glad you did, Jack, I really have been wanting to meet him. He seems every bit as sweet as you told us. Aww, don't be embarrassed, I'm just happy for you. Maybe helping me decorate that tree will get your face to cool down."

Jack grabbed a box of tangled lights and shook his head with a grin. "I seriously doubt it."

Hiccup couldn't remember the last time he had actually baked with someone instead of leaving a cold plate of cookies out for his father before going to bed. Emma was a fun kid and definitely Jack's sister, and though she was considerably cheekier, she had that same innate kindheartedness that he loved so much in Jack. When the cookies were finished, Hiccup scooped them onto a plate and let Emma carry them out to the living room with some pot holders while he brought four mugs of milk to go with them.

"Ta Da! Nøttetopper til Jul!"

Jack gave his sister a little round of applause before taking a mug and one of the warm cookies. "I am very impressed your highness! These smell delicious, Hic. Oh man, they taste even better!"

Hiccup blushed at the praise and took one for himself. "Thanks for suggesting it; I haven't made them in a long time. Oh, I made sure that the kitchen was clean when we left, Mrs. Overland."

Jack's mother closed her eyes appreciatively as the flavor of warm hazelnuts danced over her tongue. "I'd rather you call me Helen, but when I'm eating something as heavenly as this, you can call me anything you want. Would you mind giving me the recipe for these, or is it a family secret?"

Emma took another cookie and started soaking it in her milk. "I already wrote it down for you, mom, it's in your recipe box. These are definitely too good not to make again."

The next few hours were spent with talk and laughter while they all got to know each other a little better. Soon the sky was dark and Emma started to yawn. Jack picked up his groggy sister and carried her to her bed while Hiccup helped Helen tidy the living room. Emma groaned as she was covered up with a blanket, even though she was still in her clothes, and squinted up at her brother.

"Jack?"

The boy tucked the blankets closer and hummed softly. "Hmm? What is it Em?"

"I hope Hiccup stays with you forever."

-

Emma's words were still on Jack's mind as he drove back towards the shared house twenty minutes later, and his silence must have been noticeable because Hiccup gently brushed his arm. "Are you alright, Jack?"

"Just thinking about something Emma said. Do you mind not going back to the house yet? I think I need to drive some more."

Hiccup was slightly concerned but knew Jack would talk when he was ready. "Yeah, go ahead, I'm not tired."

Winding his way aimlessly along Burgess's deserted streets, Jack finally pulled into an empty parking lot and turned off the car. The boys sat in silence for a long time until Jack saw that Hiccup was shivering. "Sorry. Let's get you back home."

"I'd rather snuggle, and besides, I am home, Jack; wherever you are is home."

Jack felt his heart thump a little harder as he wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and buried his nose in the waves of his thick chestnut hair. "You smell really good."

"I should, I used your shampoo this morning."

They sat breathing peacefully for several minutes, and Hiccup was almost asleep when Jack's deep voice rumbled softly through his body. "Hiccup? How long do you want to stay with me?"

Hiccup shifted so he could look at Jack's face. "What do you mean? Like, at the house? Cause I told you I can stay with Snotlout if you think your place is too crowded."

"No, I... I mean how long do you want to be my boyfriend. Someday you might want to move on to other things, or other people. Emma said she hopes you stay with me forever, but I don't want you to feel like you're stuck with me just because I'm your first boyfriend."

Jack looked down at his tightly clenched hands and braced himself for the worst. Hiccup thought he understood where he was coming from and sat up, taking Jack's cold, hands in his. "Jack... You were, and still are, my first boyfriend, and I love you more than I know what to do with sometimes. I am going to say something extremely sappy but I want you to know that I mean every word of it."

Jack chanced a glance into hazel green eyes that he knew held only the truth. "What's that?"

"When our lips touch, I swear I can taste the next sixty years of my life."

Happiness bubbled up through Jack and he threw his arms around Hiccup's shoulders, gripping handfuls of his ratty old green jacket that in the moment felt like the most wonderful thing in the world. "I don't know what I'd do without you. Thank you for saying that, I mean it."

Hiccup chuckled and held Jack a little tighter. "I meant it with all my heart; sixty years is hardly enough time, but I'll take every second I'm offered to be with you. I love you."

"I love you too, Hiccup... Forever."

Gobber was usually able to make it through the holidays by cheering up his friends with some Viking ridiculousness or other, but with everything that had happened in the last few days, waves of old memories seemed to knock him down every time he thought he'd gotten a solid grasp on them. He'd spent the day pouring over old photos and feeling himself come apart at the seams. After a while he'd simply fallen asleep on the couch with several photo albums scattered across the coffee table and floor, and only the sound of the phone ringing had been enough to wake him.

"Yeah, hello?"

"Gobber? The phone was ringing for two minutes; are ye alright?"

The man rubbed tiredly at his eyes, and sighed. "Erm... no, actually. This whole thing with Hikke has brought up some painful memories that I thought I'd been able to let rest."

"Do ye... do ye need to be alone, or could ye take some company?"

Gobber knew his friend was in about as much pain as he was, so he gave in. "No, come on over. I'll heat up some food and mead by the time ye get here."

After hanging up, Gobber looked over at the photo albums on the table. Did he want to share that part of himself? Confronting Stoick about his son had been... not easy, exactly, but there had been a certain courage he'd felt from standing up for someone else. Would he have that same confidence again if he needed it? The books were back on the shelf by the time Stoick let himself in. Many long years of friendship had honed the men's communication into one of trust, knowing if either of them wanted to talk, he would when he was ready, so Stoick wasn't overly concerned when Gobber didn't speak to him.

While they ate, Stoick's mind churned in turmoil and confusion about his son. Had he overreacted to the whole situation? Had Hikke really been like that for years without him noticing? Was he actually in a relationship with someone and not told him about it? Was he such a terrible father that his own son felt he couldn't talk to him? Was there a way to salvage the situation while still doing what he thought was best as a parent? Or, since he was now over eighteen, would Hikke simply choose to never speak to him again?

"Where did I go wrong?"

Gobber sighed heavily and shook his head. "By not listening to yer son when he spoke. Ye did yer best all these years to provide for him, and ye have, but he needed something else."

"Be honest with me, Gobber; can I fix this, or have I just lost my son?"

"I think that depends on ye. Are ye willing to be open minded about the situation without judging? And, if Hikke doesn't change his mind, are ye willing to accept his decisions for his own life?"

"Ye now that I only want him to be alright. Since ye seem better informed on this subject than I am, would ye mind me asking some questions?"

The next several hours were spent, somewhat awkwardly, but still productive in Gobber's opinion, and by the time he went back home, Stoick felt he needed to speak to his son. Trying Hikke's cell phone proved useless since he hadn't turned it back on, so he tried sending an email instead. How one short paragraph could take over an hour to write, he'd never know, but finally the message was sent and Stoick got ready for bed.

When they got back to the house, Hiccup nearly burst out laughing at the sight of Tooth, Sandy, and Aster sprawled over every inch of the couch, and each other, fast asleep. Jack hung up their coats while Hiccup got his phone out to take a picture, stopping when he saw the notification that he had an email. Thinking it might be from Toothless he opened it, face falling when he saw it was from his father. Jack noticed the slight shift and touched his shoulder. "You okay?"

"Um, yeah. Can- can I use your room to read this?"

"Sure, go ahead." Jack watched him shut the bedroom door, wishing he could be in there holding him.

Hiccup curled up on Jack's bunk, squeezing his peppermint scented pillow close to his chest for comfort as he read his email.

-Hikke,

I'm sorry I blew up at ye the other night and at Nathaniel yesterday. I'm only worried about ye as any good parent would be, and I hope ye won't hold that against me at least. I want ye to thrive, to have that good life. I want ye to know that I won't stop paying for yer tuition, since I want ye to have the education and opportunities that I never had. I wish we agreed on the other matter, and I still hope ye talk to someone or get some help. Not because I don't love ye, but because I do. Yer all grown up, and I can't make ye do anything, but please let me know that yer alright once in a while, and maybe try going out with Astrid.-

Hiccup blinked through a few tears that fell onto Jack's pillow as he looked out the window at the snow. "He'll never get it..."


	5. Chapter 5 - We're all scared kids inside

**Notes: This chapter contains a** **brief mention of homophobia/violence.**

Year three - December 1st

Aster walked through the front door of the house, groaned, and walked back out again. North was unloading groceries from his car trunk, and Tooth looked up as she balanced a family size box of cereal under her chin while her hands fished for something in her pockets. "What's the matter, Bunny? Did we forget something?"

The taller boy grabbed the box just as it was about to fall and scowled. "No, it's those two in there. I've caught 'em pashin' three times this week an' it's only Tuesday! If they don't get a place of their own soon, I'm gonna throw myself off the water tower!"

Tooth took the box back and led the way into the house. "I don't know if they can afford to move out, but you can always talk to them about it. Just be nice."

The boys must have heard North's car in the drive because they were already in the kitchen making a snack when the others came in. Jack helped put the food away while Hiccup made three extra cups of hot chocolate, and Aster snickered when Jack gave his boyfriend a little kiss on his way passed the stove. "Well, well, don't you two look domestic; why don't ya get your own place so ya can play house without people walkin' in on ya?"

"BUNNY!" The grey haired boy laughed and tried to duck out of the way of Tooth swatting him with a bag of marshmallows. Jack plucked the flattened treats out of his friend's hand and tossed them to Hiccup before facing his roommate.

"Something on your mind, Cottontail?"

"Just that you two have been gettin' real cuddly lately."

Hiccup snuggled up behind his boyfriend, wrapping his arms around his waist and grinning over his shoulder. "Who wouldn't want to cuddle with somebody this sweet?"

He nuzzled into Jack's warm neck. "You know what I think, Jack? I think Bunny's jealous 'cause he knows I have the best boyfriend in the whole world and he can't have you."

Aster rolled his eyes, "Hardly. You guys are just makin' me sick with all the PDA."

Jack grinned wickedly, popped a marshmallow between his teeth, and turned his face to Hiccup. "Ya wan' shome, Hic?" The brunet wiggled his eyebrows and bit the other half of the marshmallow, "Don' min' if I do."

Aster threw his hands in the air and stomped down the hallway, slamming the door to his and Jack's bedroom, "That's it! Ya can make your own accommodations tonight, Frosty!"

The boys started howling with laughter while North and Tooth looked at them, then at each other, and shrugged. North started searching the cupboard for some cookies and Tooth blew on her drink to cool it, "So... what was that exactly?"

Jack grinned at Hiccup, causing him to almost snort his cocoa and start laughing again. "Just teasing Bunny. Well not just, but, you know, he's so fun to irritate!"

North 'Aha'd!' as he found the cookies and arranged them on a plate. "You said not only for teasing; what is other reason?"

Hiccup warily took a sip of his drink before answering. "I've been offered an instructor's position at the college and we thought now that we can afford it, we could get an apartment together."

Tooth clasped her hands and spun around the kitchen, "Oh, that's wonderful! Have you started looking for a place yet?"

Seeing that Hiccup was now engrossed in conversation with North and Tooth, Jack slipped quietly out of the kitchen, and made his way to his bedroom. Aster was bent over his homework when a familiar knock sounded on the door. "You're still not gettin' in, Jack!"

Everything was quiet for a few minutes before a soft swishing noise caught his attention, as a piece of paper was pushed under the door. Picking it up, he chuckled at the drawing of a tattooed rabbit done in crayon with the message: Be my friend? Aster shook his head and opened the door to let his friend in. Jack jumped up and gave him a quick hug.

"I knew you wouldn't leave me out in the cold!"

"Like ya'd even notice. What's up though, Frostbite? I have a feeling that little show was for a reason."

Jack hopped up to sit on his bunk, swinging his legs over the side. "It was. Hiccup really does want us to get a place of our own."

"Ya don't sound too excited about the idea."

Jack drew his knees into his chest and sighed. "I am, but... How do I know if I'm responsible enough to, I don't know, be an adult? This is a really big thing and sometimes I just feel like a scared kid."

Aster was tall enough that his head was level with the top bunk as he looked into his friend's eyes. "We're all scared kids inside, Jack; that doesn't mean ya aren't mature enough. There's no one right way to be an adult either; just be yourself and everything will work out."

Jack smiled a little, "How can you know stuff like that when you're younger than me?"

Aster dragged his friend off the bed and noogied him. "'Cause I'm the Easter Bunny, I know everything. Now, if ya need help findin' a place I know a few people; just lighten up on the pashin', alright? Not everyone wants to see it."

Jack wiggled out of his friend's headlock and skipped out of reach before the other boy had a chance to catch him, yelling as he ran through the house, "I'm not making any promises!"

The next two weeks were spent in finishing schoolwork before winter break, working, and apartment hunting. The weather was a pain, but it helped to get a perspective on traveling conditions to and from the university campus in winter. They finally found a place in a quiet neighbourhood, a little over a mile from town. The car that Jack had rescued from the scrap heap earlier that year purred like a contented kitten, (thanks to his engineer boyfriend), as they pulled up to their new apartment with their two duffle bags of possessions in the back seat. Hiccup unlocked the door and went inside to turn on the heat and unpack, but Jack stood just outside the apartment, clutching his bag to his chest, nervous to take the first step.

"It's okay. There's nothing to be scared about." He let out a small breath, and stepped inside. There, that wasn't so bad. At least it was warmer. Hiccup came out of the bedroom still wearing his coat and hat, finally noticing that Jack hadn't followed him.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Coming closer he saw the reddened tint of Jack's lips where he'd been biting them, and gave him a hug. "What's wrong, Jack?"

"I'm just scared of messing all this up. I mean, you're so responsible and efficient all the time, you could probably live in a cave and make it look easy. I just... I always make a mess of everything."

Hiccup sighed and shook his head. "Jack... I've been doing this for most of my life. My dad's been working six am to midnight for years, and I had to learn to take care of myself at a very young age. I never got the chance to be a kid, and I never fit in with the other kids in Berk except for Toothless and Astrid. I might be efficient but I wish I wasn't sometimes because then maybe I could be normal."

Jack hung his head. "I'm sorry, I didn't think of that."

"It's okay. But you know what? You do something for me that no one else can."

"What's that?"

Hiccup buried his nose in Jack's neck to try and control the wave of emotions attempting to wash over him. "You make me feel normal. You are literally the only person in the whole world that I can be completely myself around, and that means everything to me."

Jack laughed quietly and stood a little taller, feeling a lot better about life in general. "You want to have some fun?"

"What did you have in mind?"

With his usual cheeky grin, Jack pulled Hiccup toward the front door. "How about we go shopping for a few things like, I don't know... food? That fridge look pretty empty, and I could sure go for some hot chocolate right about now."

When they got to the store, Jack grabbed a shopping basket and made a bee-line for the baking aisle. Scanning the shelves for chocolate chips, he was slightly overwhelmed by the sheer variety available. "Hic? Which kind do you- Hiccup?"

Looking around, he spotted a familiar green jacket at the other end of the aisle and jogged up to him. "Hiccup?"

The brunet's head was slightly bowed, his shoulders slumped, and though Jack followed his line of sight to see what had upset him, nothing looked out of place on the shelf of pancake and waffle mixes that he could see. He slid his arm around Hiccup's shoulders, and felt him lean in a little. "What's the matter, love?"

"I just realized," A tear slipped silently down Hiccup's freckled cheek to lose itself in the slight scruff on his chin, "that I've got everything my dad ever wanted for me, but he's not here to see it."

Gobber was looking through his photo albums when he heard Stoick's truck rumble into the driveway. He put the books back on the shelf with a momentary lingering touch, not quite being able to shift his focus away from the memories, before opening the door for his friend.

"Ye look cold."

"Yeah, well, it's only twenty degrees out."

Stoick shut the door behind himself while Gobber heated a pot of soup, waving a wooden spoon airily to try and lighten the mood. "That's nothing compared to that blizzard back in '90 when ye couldn't even open yer front door because it froze shut."

"That's true. I erm... I went to a PFLAG meeting tonight. Just thought ye'd like to know."

The spoon clanked quietly as Gobber stirred the soup that was beginning to bubble softly. "What did ye think about it?"

"It was good. I've been doing my best to learn what I can since we started talking last year; ye know. And I'm... I'm sorry. For everything. I was wrong about Hikke, and I hope I get the chance to tell him that."

"Do ye really mean all that?"

"I do. Every word."

Gobber's heart pounded in his chest as he thought about the pictures in his albums; knowing that if he didn't speak now, he'd never get the nerve again. "Do ye remember when I told ye about my friends from college?"

"The ones in the gay rights rallies? Aye, what about them?"

"I never told ye about Markko."

Stoick found two mugs in the cupboard and ran some hot water over them to warm up. "Markko? Is that an Icelandic name?"

"Finnish. I met him when I went to Finland in that foreign exchange program."

Stoick nodded, "I remember; that was the year ye lost yer hand. Did that have anything to do with Markko?"

Gobber took a deep breath, not wanting to let it go in case he couldn't get another. "It did. We were walking to the pub one night and erm... turned onto the wrong street and ran into some local toughs. Apparently they thought the way I was trying to protect Markko was too "overprotective" for a friend, so they attacked us."

Stoick slammed his hands down on the counter, his face a mask of horror and shock. "Why would anyone do that?! I understand ye, Gobber; yer always standing up for yer friends."

"That's just it though, Stoick, Markko wasn't just my friend..." Gobber's face reddened slightly and he stared down at the stovetop. In the heavy silence, the only sound that could be heard was the distant ticking of a clock somewhere in the empty house.

Stoick's voice was quiet, and slightly gravelly when he broke the stillness several minutes later, "That's why ye wanted to help Hikke so much. Ye understood how he felt. If ye don't mind me asking, what erm... what happened to Markko?"

Gobber quickly scrubbed a hand across his eyes. "I don't know. I was beaten unconscious and didn't wake up for two weeks. When I did, I was in the hospital missing half my arm, and my visa had run out. I tried to ask the police when they came to question me but they wouldn't tell me anything. And when I got home ye know my father became ill, and I couldn't get the chance to search properly."

"I'm sorry... I'm glad ye felt ye could trust me enough to tell me. I understand why ye didn't before."

"It's alright. Do ye... do ye still want to be my friend?"

Stoick's big hand crossed to grip Gobber's equally big one in their old handshake of many long years. "Always. Yer the same person ye were before ye told me, right?"

 **Notes: PFLAG – Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays is an American LGBTQ support, education, and advocacy organization.**


	6. Chapter 6 - Snow tires

**Notes: This chapter contains descriptions of a car accident and emotional pain. If that will bother you, please don't read it. You won't miss anything important to the story.**

Year four - December 19th

Jack woke to his boyfriend's arm landing across his neck, and, turning in so he wouldn't be choked to death, he slid his own arms around Hiccup and snuggled closer. Why was it so cold this morning? He opened one blue eye toward the window. _Oh, it snowed..._

 _IT SNOWED!_

It took every scrap of self-control Jack owned not to jump straight out of bed and run outside shouting praises to the sky. Instead, he squeezed Hiccup gently until he started to wake up.

"Nnn, 's it morning already?"

"Yeah, it is. Hiccup, _it snowed!_ Let's take the day off and go outside."

Hiccup's face scrunched adorably as he yawned and sat up. "Can't. I've got my last project due today. But it's Friday, so we can do movies and takeout tonight, then we've got the next two weeks off for winter break."

Jack pulled a face but ended up grinning as he helped make the bed. "Oh alright; I've got to go to work anyway. Do you want to ride over together?"

"Nope, it's my half day, and I've still got papers to grade before I go in. I can make you a hot breakfast though..."

The last few words were sung teasingly with a mischievous eyebrow wiggle, and Jack was not one to pass up hot breakfast with his even hotter boyfriend. By the time he left for work, Jack was in his usual optimistic mood, lightly whistling his favorite Christmas song while he dug around in his pockets for his keys. Finally finding them, he unlocked his car, absently glancing over at Hiccup's and making a mental note to change over the snow tires on both cars for winter. Other things soon pushed the thought to the back of his mind as he headed out for the day.

Back inside, Hiccup got out the test papers he needed to grade, and sat down at the kitchen table with a fresh pot of coffee. Several hours later, the coffee was gone, and a completed stack of papers waited to be taken in. Hiccup walked around the kitchen to stretch out the stiffness in his limbs; and when a quick look at the clock showed it to be around one, he wasn't surprised to hear his stomach grumble. After all that brainwork he was hungry, and when he looked in the fridge he realized he probably wasn't the only one, since Jack's lunch was still on the top shelf where he'd put it the night before.

Hiccup had never been to the university preschool where Jack was working as a teacher's aide, so he had to ask for directions and make a few wrong turns before finally finding the right building. A grandmotherly woman with purple reading glasses looked up from her paperback novel, her own lunch seemingly forgotten, and smiled as he approached the front desk.

"Excuse me, does Jack Overland work here?"

"We don't normally give out that kind of information; may I ask why you need to know?"

Hiccup sheepishly held up Jack's snowflake covered lunchbox and grinned, "He forgot his lunch."

"Oh heavens, go right ahead. He's in room four; down the hall, blue door on the left."

Hiccup thanked her and made his way along the brightly decorated hallway to room four, and when he found it, he watched Jack playing with the kids for a minute. He was sprinkling paper confetti snow around a group of happily shrieking four year olds, making them shriek with laughter and toss handfuls of it into the air. Knocking lightly on the door, Hiccup popped his head in. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Jack forgot his lunch."

The teacher smiled and waved him in. "Come on in. Jack? There's someone here to see you."

Jack turned a little and a happy grin spread over his face. Hiccup grinned back and sat cross legged on the floor so the kids could pile 'snow' on his head; Jack grabbed another handful of confetti, sprinkling it over him until tiny drifts began to pile up around his knees. Dust from the paper eventually found its way into Hiccup's nose, causing him to sneeze in a spectacular blizzard that had the kids squealing in delight all over again. After a few more minutes, the teacher called for the children to get their lunches and sit at the table, quickly sending all thoughts of snow from their minds. Hiccup laughed and stood to brush some of the confetti off his clothes while Jack attempted to get what he could out of his hair.

"What brings the Dragon Rider today?"

"Lunch. Aren't you getting hungry?"

Brushing one last piece of paper snow from Hiccup's shoulder, Jack noticed the box in his hand. "Oh! Thanks for bringing it to me; I probably would have been starving by the time I got home."

Hiccup smiled, "No problem. I need to get going, but I'll be home by six; then we can eat together."

Jack nodded and was about to join the lunch table when Hiccup surprised him with a quick kiss on his cheek. Blushing furiously at the mad giggling from the kids, and Hiccup's slight chuckle of "See you later, Snowflake." Jack sat down and tried to focus on his own lunch while little hands attempted to cover poorly concealed snickers, and the teacher gave him a look that was usually reserved for kittens. Jack groaned when he opened his lunchbox and found a love note tucked under his sandwich. He was suddenly really glad none of the kids could read yet.

A light sleet was falling as Hiccup jogged out to his car, giving an unamused glance at the dull grey sky overhead that only seemed interested in spitting slush. Slowly weaving out of the parking lot, Hiccup made his way across campus to the engineering department and pulled into an empty parking space. After locking the door, he hitched his heavy backpack up on his shoulder and turned toward the building. The sudden shift of weight was enough that his next step onto a patch of compacted sleet caused him to slip and fall heavily.

"Shite! Ow, man, that hurt!" Holding on to the car for balance, Hiccup got to his feet and winced at the stiffness in his left leg from the fall. Limping inside to his classroom, he deposited his bag in a chair and sat in another to try and work the cramp out of his leg. One of his fellow students noticed and came over to check on him.

"Hey, Prof; you ok?"

"Yeah, I just slipped on some snow, I'm sure it'll be fine by the time I get home.

By five-thirty, Hiccup's leg was feeling back to normal, and after the mentally exhausting day he'd had, he was really looking forward to winter break. The sky was already beginning to darken by the time he made his way through the parking lot again, and more snow had fallen, covering everything in a two inch layer of white. It took a few minutes to get the car warmed up before he could start driving, and when he did, Hiccup noticed his tires were slipping a bit, though nothing too difficult for someone used to Berk's seemingly endless winters. After turning on the radio, the car was soon filled with Christmas music accompanied by a steady tenor singing his and Jack's favorite song.

"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose, Yuletide carols being sung by a choir, and folks dressed up like Eskimos..."

The empty back road leading out of Burgess hadn't been ploughed or sanded, and in many places the fresh snowfall had covered long patches of black ice. About a mile from the main road, Hiccup felt a sharp twinge shoot up his leg, causing him to slam on the brake and send the car spinning across the icy road. He struggled to regain control; but was too late. The driver's side door bent inward with a deafening crunch as it slammed forcefully into a tree, showering glass and metal shards into the car. Hiccup felt a searing pain in his left leg, followed by spreading warmth, before losing all consciousness.

Jack looked at the clock as the last kids were collected by their parents for the night and started to clean up. While he was under the lunch table picking up rogue pieces of confetti, the receptionist stopped by the classroom on her way out. "Would either of you like to get some coffee with me? It's freezing outside and I sure could use a cup."

The head teacher put a stack of construction paper back in the supply cupboard and winked at her assistant. "I'd love to, but I think Jack has other plans."

Jack felt his face starting to turn red as the older woman began helping them clean up. "Oooh, going somewhere special?"

Crawling from under the table, he brushed his handful of confetti into a plastic bag. "Just a nice, quiet, movie night at home with my boyfriend."

"Well that's the best kind! Why don't you let us finish here, and you go home early."

"You sure?"

Both women practically pushed him towards the door. "We're sure. Now shoo, already! Your sweetie's waiting for you."

Jack grinned and hurried to grab his coat and lunchbox before heading outside to his car.

A light snow was beginning to fall again by the time he turned off the main road and he kept his eyes trained on the single line of tire tracks standing out in front of his headlights. The sudden swirling disruption in the tracks coming into the far edge of the beam made him slow to a stop. Getting out of the car, he bent down to investigate; brushing some of the snow from the road surface.

"Black ice. Looks like a car went off the road."

Rummaging around in the glove compartment, Jack found a flashlight and started following the tire marks leading away from the road. Slowly waving the light in broad sweeps until it caught a flash of metal, Jack approached the car. "Hello? Is anyone there?"

It was difficult to tell what make the car was through the light layer of snow that had accumulated, but he could tell it was in bad shape. Knowing he would have to stay on the line with any emergency personnel he called, Jack decided to quickly tell Hiccup he was going to be late. Still holding the flashlight in one hand, Jack took out his phone with the other and hit the speed dial for Hiccup's number. A second later, the faint music of his own ringtone started coming from somewhere inside the car. Jack swore he felt his heart stop.

 **"HICCUP!"**

Running to the driver's side door, he growled frantically when he saw the tree blocking his way, but sliding on the snow to the passenger side proved equally as useless. Wrestling the locked door open with fingers frozen from adrenaline as much as cold was impossible, and it took everything Jack had not to lose his mind. Hiccup was slumped awkwardly in his seat with his left leg pinned in the twisted metal of the door; completely unresponsive to Jack's frantic shouts and pounded fists on the window. Barely able to think or keep his hands steady, Jack called 911, pressing his body close to the car as the operator kept him talking, until finally, he heard the wail of sirens in the distance. If Jack thought being unable to reach Hiccup inside the car had been hard on him, standing by while the paramedics took apart the car piece by piece until they could get to him, then watching his limp body be strapped to a gurney and quickly swept into the waiting ambulance, nearly drove him over the edge. The only thing keeping him grounded enough to drive to the hospital, was the fact that Hiccup was still alive at the moment. With the amount of blood he'd lost... even that wasn't something he could hold on to.

 **Notes: The rest of the story is smooth sailing, I promise.**


	7. Chapter 7 - Love is stronger than fear

Ch. 7 Love is stronger than fear

Toothless was laughing with Tooth over some joke while he waited for Ethan to get back from school, when his phone began ringing.

"Hey Jack, what's up?"

The voice on the other end was shaking so hard, Toothless had difficulty understanding it. "H-h-hic-cup's been in-n a c-car accident."

Tooth saw the look of cold horror on the boy's face as he gave a strangled scream and ran from the room. She heard the front door slam and picked up Toothless's phone from where he'd dropped it, and held it to her ear.

"Jack?"

"T-t-tooth?"

"Yes, it's Tooth! Jack, what happened?!"

"Hiccup was in a c-car a-accident, he's in the hospital."

"Oh my- Do you need anything? I can be there in ten minutes if it would help."

"No, th-thanks, Tooth. Nothing anyone can do right now. I'll c-call if anything changes."

"Please take care of yourself Jack, I know you won't, but please try."

"'Kay. Bye."

Aster walked into the room as Tooth closed the phone. "Ya wouldn't believe the traffic out- Tooth? What's going on?"

Carefully setting the phone down on the table, she folded her hands near her mouth, "Jack just called from the hospital, Hiccup was in a car accident."

"Oh my god. Is he gonna be alright?"

"I guess they don't know yet. Jack said he'd call when he knew more. Nate ran out of here a few minutes ago when he heard what happened."

Aster ran a hand through his short cropped hair. "Oh, crikey... Do ya know where he went?"

"No, he just panicked and ran out. His car's still in the drive so he can't have gone too far. Do you want me to help you look for him?"

Aster slipped Toothless's phone into his coat pocket and turned back towards the door, "No mate, you stay here in case Jack calls again. It'd be better if I talk to Nathan myself."

Toothless wasn't exactly sure where he was going, but his instinct in crisis was always to find safety in the trees. Making random left and right turns, he ran farther and farther away from downtown Burgess into a less populated area with some semblance of woodland. Nearing his safe haven gave the boy a final burst of strength and speed to get as deep into the trees as he could, and climb the largest one before collapsing into the comforting branches. Worry and fear gnawing at his stomach made breathing difficult and soon he was being overwhelmed by his thoughts.

Aster was beginning to get frantic. He had been randomly searching for nearly an hour without success and the night being cold and dark didn't help. "Alright, stop and think, stop and think... er, Hiccup said something about this once... Nathan er, 'Toothless always goes to the woods when he's upset.' Does Burgess even have woods? Of course! The park! Why didn't I look there before?"

Aster dodged swiftly between cars in the heavy commuter traffic as he made his way for the solitary spot of arboreal life in the mostly brick and mortar town. Entering the trees he began searching, though the low light made finding signs of life close to impossible. "Nathan? Are ya here, mate?"

Aster stood perfectly still and strained his ears against all extraneous noise, listening for anything out of place. Across the windless night air came the sound of shaking branches and muffled sobs. Careful not to lose track of the sound, Aster found the tree where Toothless huddled in a quivering ball. "Oh no. Nathan? Can ya hear me?"

No answer came save for frightened whimpers and chattering teeth. "Shite. Alright, I'm going to try and get ya down somehow."

Taking a deep breath, the tattooed boy crouched low before jumping powerfully to catch the lowest branch. He hung there momentarily, eyes squeezed shut, mouth in a thin line, breathing heavily through his nose, before swinging one leg over the branch and grabbing the next highest one, eventually bringing him to his goal. Though he could barely see, Aster's heart broke at the state his friend was in; eyes staring wildly at nothing, breathing in short painful gasps, and shivering so hard Aster wondered that he hadn't fallen out of the tree. The gentle tattooed hand stroking his back seemed to calm Toothless slightly and Aster again tried to talk to him. "Hey, you okay there, mate? This is a really nice place but I think ya need to get somewhere warmer soon."

The other boy remained unresponsive and Aster sighed, "I think I can get ya down if ya can hold on to my back. Can ya do that for me, Nathan?"

Hearing his name seemed to pull the boy slightly further back to the present and he nodded. The taller of the two carefully turned and helped the other to wrap his arms around his shoulders and legs around his waist. Toothless's still violent shivering was doing nothing to help Aster's nerves as he found that climbing down a tree was not as easy as climbing up. Eventually reaching the ground, he slumped down on the frozen grass and pulled Nathan onto his lap while he waited for his knees to begin taking orders again. "You're safe now, do ya want to go back to the house?"

A fresh bout of shivers ran through both of them and Toothless shook his head, "N-no, want t-to go home."

"I don't know where you live, mate, I only know my way around Burgess. Nathan?"

The shivering stopped suddenly, and Aster panicked until he felt hot breath on his face and realized the other boy had only passed out. Pulling out Nathan's phone, he dialed Tooth's number and waited for her to pick up.

"Nate?"

"Aster. I found him, can ya bring your car over to the park? He's out cold and I don't think I can carry him all the way back."

"I'll be right there."

A few minutes later Aster could see the headlights of Tooth's bright yellow VW Bug pulling into the parking area and the girl standing in front of it scanning for her friends.

"Bunny?"

"Over here mate!"

Tooth ran to Aster's side and carefully eased Toothless off of his lap. "What happened?"

"He was up a tree having a panic attack."

"Up a- Bunny, you didn't climb a tree did you?!"

Aster shrugged, "Had to. He wasn't in any shape to do it himself."

Tooth helped Aster to his feet and together they carried Toothless to the car and settled him in the back seat. On arriving at the house, Aster searched Nathan's pockets until he found his car key and Tooth gave him a confused look, "What are you doing?"

"Nathan said he wanted to go home, I'm going to drive him."

"Do you even know the way?"

"I'll figure it out. Thanks for the ride Tooth, ya better get back inside where it's warm."

Once the unconscious boy was securely strapped in to the passenger seat of his own car, Aster searched his phone's contact list. Finally finding the one marked 'Mom' he opened it to see if there was an address. Since there was he set it to memory long enough to get the internet browser open and map it. The route wasn't a complicated one and Aster was soon speeding along back roads and throwing the occasional quick glance at Nathan when he could safely take his eyes off the road. The map was checked twice more before a small house surrounded by woods loomed up and he parked the car. Pocketing the phone, Aster undid Nathan's seat belt and went around the car to gently gather him in his arms before carrying him up the front steps. Nora barely heard the light tapping on the door but went to investigate and opened to find a tall boy covered in tattoos trying to hold up her unconscious son.

"Mrs. Fury?"

"Yes! Oh my gods, what happened?! Please, bring him in here."

Aster followed Nora to the living room and laid Nathan on the couch while his mother ran around getting pillows, blankets, water, and anything else she thought might be useful.

"Do you know how to start a fire?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Then the wood is in that box, and it's Nora, not ma'am."

"Ethan."

Before long a warm glow lit the small room causing golden light and shadows to dance along the walls. Nora made her son as comfortable as possible before turning to the other boy. "Can you tell me what happened, Ethan?"

"Nathan got a call from our friend Jack that Hikke is in the hospital from a car accident. He, er Nathan that is, panicked and I found him up a tree in the park, he passed out from exhaustion I guess, and I drove him here."

Nora's face paled at the news, but she remained calm, "Oh my. Thank you for taking such good care of him, how did you know where we live?"

Aster handed her Nathan's phone. "He dropped this when he ran away. I just looked in the address book. I hope that was alright."

"Perfectly. If you wouldn't mind keeping an eye on Nathaniel, I need to call Hikke's father. If the poor man has already heard, he'll be going out of his mind."

After Nora left, Aster sat down by the couch and took hold of Nathan's hand, "Please be okay mate, I wouldn't climb a bloody tree for just anybody ya know."

In the kitchen Nora waited for Stoick to answer his phone, but received the machine instead. "Ye've reached the Haddock residence, leave a message."

"Stoick? It's Nora, I just heard about Hikke. Please call me if you need anything at all. I mean it!" After ending the call she decided to call Gobber and dialed his number.

"Hello."

"It's Nora. Is Stoick with you?"

"No, why?"

"Hikke was in an accident and he's in the hospital, I figure Stoick must have gone to be with him."

"Odin help us... Thank ye for calling me, if I hear from him I'll let ye know. How's Nate taking it?"

"Not well, a friend of his found him up a tree having a panic attack, after that he must have blacked out. He's still unconscious but I think it's more of an exhausted sleep by now."

"Poor lad. I'll be praying all night for Hikke until we hear something. I'll talk to ye later Nora."

"Alright, goodbye."

Gently hanging up the phone, Nora took a few moments to compose herself and send up a fervent prayer of her own. Quietly pacing around the kitchen she passed the doorway and casually glanced over to the couch. She was surprised to see Ethan tenderly stroking Nathaniel's brow and murmuring softly to him. "I know ya can't hear me right now, which is just as well since I probably sound like a gumby... but I really care a lot about ya. I'm pretty sure I love ya, and even if ya never feel the same, I'll always be your friend."

Nora felt her heart melt as the boy kissed her son's forehead before rising to his feet.

Aster found Nora busily making a cup of tea when he entered the kitchen, she looked up and smiled at him. "All quiet in there?"

"Yes ma- er, Nora. I think he's just sleeping it off. If ya don't need anything else I'll be heading out now, Jack'll be needing some help when he gets back."

"Of course, and again, thank you so much, Ethan, for helping Nathaniel tonight. I'm glad to know he has such a good friend." Aster was still smiling happily from the comment as he rode a taxi back to Burgess.


	8. Chapter 8 - It's gonna be a long night

Ch. 8 It's gonna be a long night

A giant of a man with fiery red hair rushed to the reception desk of Burgess Hospital, and the girl behind the desk smiled calmly at him as he panicked.

"Where's my son?!"

"What is his name, sir?"

"Hikke Haddock. I'm his father, Stoick, I just got a call saying he'd been in an accident of some sort and brought here."

"Haddock... Oh, yes, he was taken into intensive care about twenty minutes ago. There were some injuries, but his condition appeared to be stable. I'm afraid you won't be able to see him for at least a few hours Mr. Haddock. If you want to wait you're more than welcome to use that room over there and someone will come get you if his condition changes."

The man nodded unhappily and made his way to the small meditation room. Seeing someone was already there, he quietly sat down on the opposite side of the room, leaned back, and wearily closed his eyes. Time seemed to have slowed to a crawl and according to the clock, only six minutes had passed since he had first come in. A quiet sighing-sniffing sound met his ears and he took another look at his room companion. The other man sat bent with his white haired head in his hands and appeared to be praying fervently under his breath. Stoick felt sorry for the old man, he really did seem to be suffering,

"Are ye alright? I don't mean to bother ye, but ye seem ready to drop. Would ye like some water?"

The man shook his head slowly and Stoick was surprised to hear a very young, very shaky voice answer, "No thanks, I'm ok."

The white head raised and a young man in his mid-twenties met Stoick's concerned gaze with a pained one of icy blue. "Sometimes shit happens and there's nothing you can do about it."

The older man nodded, "I know what ye mean. I lost my wife many years ago, and today I almost lost my son. He's in there now and I didn't even get to see him."

"My boyfriend's car ran off the road and hit a tree. I know it was my fault too, I should have put the snow tires on last week before that stupid road iced up!"

"I'm sorry; I hope he'll be alright. Do ye mind talking? It seems to make the clock go a little faster."

"No, it's ok. So what's your son like?" "Stubborn, boar-headed, can't keep still. His mother never could either; they're a lot alike really, so hopeful and full of life. What's yer boyfriend like?"

"He's infuriatingly stubborn but loyal to a fault, sarcastic but insanely funny, equal parts fiercely protective and heart breakingly vulnerable, and he has the most amazing bounce-back attitude I've ever seen."

"Hah! He sounds like my son; he's not one to let life get him down either! I haven't seen him in a while though, we had a bit of an argument before he moved out a few years ago and haven't talked much since. I'm surprised I was still in his emergency contacts."

"I'm sure he still loves you, people just need space sometimes. Maybe you can work it out?"

"I hope so. I said things from my own stubbornness that were wrong, but I've learned a lot in the past few years and I just hope I get the chance to tell him. Erm, if ye don't mind me asking, what do yer parents think about ye being together? I mean, are they supportive?"

"Oh, well, um, my family is perfectly fine with everything, they're very accepting anyway so there were never really any issues. My boyfriend's family doesn't know yet, and he's not really sure if he wants to tell them. Why did you want to know exactly?"

Stoick looked down at his prayerfully folded hands, "The fight when my son left was when he told me he was gay. I reacted badly and he was so hurt and angry. It took all his courage to tell me and all I did was shout at him."

"What made you change your mind?"

"Getting a lecture from my best friend of forty years that loving who you love doesn't make a person any different than they were before they told you. That, and him informing me that he's gay as well."

The white haired male snickered, "That would do it. I just realized I never introduced myself. I'm Jack."

A large hand enveloped the much smaller one, "Stoick. Well that killed about ten minutes. I think I need some coffee, you want a cup?"

Jack stood and followed him to the door, "Yeah, it's gonna be a long night."

The hospital cafeteria was painted in rather medicinal shades of pale grey, mint green, and white. Not really inviting colors for people in various stages of shock. Jack wrinkled his nose, "Ugh, I hate this hospital. You know these are the same paint colors they had ten years ago? It would look way better if they painted it blue."

"Hmm, I didn't know, I don't live around here actually. What happened ten years ago?"

"My sister and I were skating on the pond and the ice broke. I managed to save her but fell in myself, so I ended up in here for a couple of weeks to recover."

"A few weeks?! Falling through ice usually doesn't take that long, how serious was it?"

Jack shrugged, "Eh, I guess I was in the water long enough to flat line. But I got better, so what's the point in worrying about it, ya know? I'm just glad it was me and not my sister."

"That's very brave." Jack shrugged again and studied the menu board. "The food hasn't improved much either, I think I'll get a sandwich and some coffee."

After seating themselves at a small table the two men fell to talking again. "Yer right about the food, this coffee's terrible. Now my Val could make the best pot of coffee this side of Valhalla. Oh it was perfect, so smooth and never bitter. Mmmmm..."

"Hiccup makes coffee like that; he's actually a really good cook, which is great since the only thing I can make is toast."

"Hiccup?"

"Oh, nickname. The first time we met he was trying to cure a really bad case of hiccups, and he was holding his breath so hard I thought he was going to pass out. I gave him some water and the look on his face was like I'd just handed him the water of life. He was so cute that I asked if he wanted to get a coffee, and we've been best friends ever since. He also has a foreign name that I can't pronounce without him having a laughing fit."

"Where's he from?"

"Berk. Couple towns north of here."

"Ah. Yeah there are a lot of odd names there; the old belief was that a terrible name would keep away trolls."

Jack smiled and yawned, "So I, ahhhh... heard. Damn, must have gotten decaf by mistake. Better get back to the other room in case something happens."

After settling into his former chair, long legs stretched out in front, arms crossed over his chest, Jack lost the valiant struggle to remain awake and began snoring softly. Stoick chuckled and smiled to himself, I hope Hikke found someone like that...

"Mr. Overland?" Jack's head shot up roughly as the nurse lightly shook his shoulder. "What's going on? Is he awake?!" "He's just coming off the anesthetic now, but he keeps calling for you so I think you'd better go to him." Stoick caught Jack's arm before he dashed out the door, "Good luck and gods bless ye both." Jack gave him a quick smile, "Thanks. You too."

Hiccup was groggily mumbling something that sounded like "I could've sworn you had teeth..." when Jack rushed into the room and to the side of the bed. The sight of Hiccup's skinny body covered in tubes and wires was almost too much for Jack and he began crying again.

"Hiccup? C-can you hear me?"

"Jack? I think the car's dead. You'd better give it a funeral."

Jack laughed and wiped his eyes, "At least it's not you! I was so worried you wouldn't make it."

"Hey don't worry about me, I'm a Viking, I can take on a little ice. I hope you won't freak too much, Jack, but... they kind of took my leg."

Jack's head whipped around to look and he almost broke down completely. "No, no, nonononoonono! This is all my fault! If I had just changed your snow tires, this wouldn't have happened!"

Suddenly painfully coherent, Hiccup tried to sit up but couldn't move from the network of wires crossing his body. "Jack, look at me. Jack, Jack! Calm down. I'm ok. It's just a hiccup, right? Just a challenge to rise above, right? Right?"

Jack struggled to regain his breath, "B-but Hic-"

Hiccup managed to get hold of Jack's face between his hands and looked into his eyes, "No buts! It's just a stupid leg, you didn't lose me and I didn't lose you! That's what matters to me. You never know how long you have to be with the ones you love."

Jack nodded silently and leaned in to kiss him, "You're right."

A few minutes later Jack had his chair pulled as close to Hiccup's bed as possible and sat holding his hand and telling jokes to help take his mind off the pain the "Viking" stubbornly refused take a sedative for. A nurse came in to check Hiccup's current condition, and lightly flicked the sedative IV, wondering why it hadn't gone down yet. "Do you feel up to a little more company? Your father is here to see you."

Hiccup jumped and instantly regretted it as a searing pain shot up his leg. He gritted his teeth and hissed. "Shite! I forgot he was still in my emergency contacts. I guess now's as good a time as any. Tell him to come in." Jack squeezed his hand and gave him an encouraging smile, "Hey, I'm sure it'll all work out."

Stoick thanked the nurse, and after taking a deep breath, opened the door. Jack's eyes widened and a huge grin spread across his face.

"Stoick! I haven't seen you in, what, a whole twenty minutes?"

"Hello Jack! It's good to see ye again. I take it this is your boyfriend?"

"And I take it he's your son?"

They both turned wide smiles on Hiccup who just sat looking completely lost.

"Huh?"

Stoick's rumbling laugh echoed through the small room as Jack explained. "I've been talking to Stoick the entire night! I didn't know he was your dad!"

"You've been... Uh, well, I guess I don't have to do any explaining then."

Stoick smiled down at his son with such an expression of love it made Hiccup's heart ache. "Ye never have to explain anything to me son, I've missed ye so much these last few years. Can ye accept my apologies for being so stubborn? Will ye let me be yer father again?"

"Y-you changed your mind, a-about me, and the way I am?"

Stoick knelt down so he could look his son in the eyes, "I have. I learned that I didn't know as much as I thought I did about life and family and friends. You are my son Hikke, and I couldn't be prouder."

Ignoring the wires that threatened to choke him, Hiccup hugged his father tight and wept. "Thanks, dad."

Stoick patted his back and looked up at Jack who was smiling through a few tears of his own. The big man waved him over, "And you! Get over here!"

Jack soon found himself being crushed in the biggest group hug imaginable, gasping for air and laughing. "How are you guys even related? Hiccup's so tiny next to you!"

Stoick let go of Jack and laughed. "He get's it from his mother. Hikke, we have so much to talk about but I know yer tired so I'll come back later. Get yer rest, son. Goodbye, Jack."

When his father had left, Hiccup laid back and shook his head, "Did that just happen?" Jack leaned down and kissed him gently, "Yes it did. I'm happy for you Hic."


	9. Chapter 9 - Plans

**Notes: This is being uploaded from my tablet, so I hope the formatting is okay.**

 **Lots of fluff to get you wound up for the next chapter!**

Nathaniel woke groggily the next morning to the sound of his mother's voice excitedly talking on the phone.

"Thank the gods... He'll be so relieved... Yes, thank you, Stoick... You too. Bye."

Nathan jumped off the couch and staggered into the kitchen, ignoring the screaming pain in his head.

"Was that about Hiccup?!"

"Yes, he's fine! Apparently he does have some injuries, but he should be out of the hospital sometime in the next two weeks."

A wave of relief washed over the boy and he slumped into a chair. "Gods I was so scared. Why was I sleeping on the couch?"

"Your friend Ethan brought you home unconscious last night. I guess you had some sort of panic attack after you heard about Hiccup yesterday."

"I can barely remember, I'd better call and thank him."

Nora adopted an innocent expression as she sipped her tea, "He's a nice boy, I can see why you like him so much."

"MOM!"

"What? He is the reason you come home from your trips to Burgess in such a good mood isn't he?"

The incredible pink flush on the boy's cheeks was answer enough and Nora chuckled. "He likes you too you know."

"He- he does? Did he say something?"

"I think getting you out of a tree and driving thirty miles to bring you home is a pretty good indication. Although I did hear him say something about always being your friend even if you never felt the same."

"Oh my gods! He must love me! Mom, Ethan is afraid of heights, he barely manages a flight of stairs without death-gripping the handrail but he got me out of a flipping tree! Do you know how scared he must have been?!"

Nora laughed at the awestruck look on her son's face, "Well what are you waiting for? Go call him!"

Nathan dashed back to the living room and grabbed his phone from the end table and muttered under his breath as the ringing stretched on an irritatingly long time. "Come on, pick up the phone!" A gruff sleepy voice yawned before answering, " 'Ello? Who's there?"

"It's Nathan, I- I just wanted to thank you for helping me last night. I can't believe you actually climbed a tree."

"That's okay mate, it wasn't that bad."

"Ethan, I know how scared you must have been and I want you to know how much I appreciate it."

There was a short silence before a quiet voice came over the line, "I'd do it again if you needed it."

"I know."

"You do?"

"Yeah. My mom told me you said something about being my friend even if I didn't feel the same. I don't think that's ever going to happen."

Aster's voice sounded close to tears when he spoke again, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anythi-"

"It's not going to happen because I could never be just friends with you. Because I... I love you."

A stunned silence was followed by a whooping cheer and Nathan could just make out confused voices in the background, "Ya mean it?! Oh, I'd be pashin' yer face off right now if I could! Just say it again so I know I'm not dreamin'."

Nathan laughed and shouted, "I love you, I Love You, I LOVE YOU!"

Aster's voice could be heard turning away from the phone, "Did you guys hear that?! He said he loves me!" Cheering laughter broke out and the voice came closer again. You have no idea how long I've wanted to say this... I love you, Nathan Fury."

The other boy giggled a little, "Well I like hearing it! Not to change the subject much, but Hiccup's dad called, he's going to be alright and he should be home in about two weeks."

"That's great! Jack'll probably be getting in soon then. I'd better get going but I'm coming to see you as soon as I can alright?"

"Not if I come see you first! I love you Ethan."

"I love you too."

Nathan set down his phone and flopped face first into a pile of couch cushions. "Ohhhh myyyyyy gooooooods!"

On reaching home, Stoick had found a frantic phone message from Nora and decided to call despite the early morning hour. She was ecstatic to hear of Hikke's imminent recovery and thanked him for calling. After getting a hot shower and some breakfast, Stoick drove to the workshop. Gobber looked up in surprise at the familiar door slam and waited for his friend to come in, "Stoick! Shouldn't ye be at the hospital? How's Hikke doing?"

"He's fine Gobber, he has lost part of his left leg but thank gods nothing more serious."

The blond man sighed deeply in relief. "Odin be praised. Did ye just get in? Ye can take the day off if ye want, I can handle everything for a while."

"No thanks, Gobber. I want to work, it'll help me calm down. I had an interesting night though if ye want to hear about it."

Gobber smiled as he opened the hood of a car and rubbed his hands together, "Oh, I do love a good story!"

Stoick proceeded to relate the events of the night and his conversation with Jack. "And you'll never guess what happened next!"

"He was Hikke's boyfriend the whole time."

"How did you-?"

"Nora."

Stoick groaned, "That woman! She still doesn't trust me. Though I don't blame her, I was terrible. Do ye think there's anything I can do to mend things with her? I'd rather us not be wary wary strangers forever."

"Why don't ye give Hikke a little homecoming party for Yule? He'll be out of the hospital by then, so invite Jack to stay for the weekend and I'll get Nora and Nate to come too. It'll be like the old days."

Stoick gave his friend a hearty pat on the back before returning to work, "That's brilliant! I think I've got another idea too. This is going to be the best holiday ever!"

Ever since Gobber had told him about Markko a year ago, Stoick had done his best to find any information on the man that he could. Most searches came up fruitless but there was one lead that had seemed to go further than the rest. Getting the right help was going to be a challenge, but fortunately 'Viking stubbornness issues' could come in handy sometimes. So with two weeks to go and a solid plan, Stoick started his mission.

"Gobber, do ye think ye could get Nathaniel over to yer place without Nora finding out? I need his help with a special present for Hikke and I know Nora won't even let the boy within a hundred yards of my house."

"I think I could manage it. I'll just ask him to stop by on his way to Burgess tomorrow. Can ye be there before I leave in the morning? Ye can just lock the door on yer way out."

Stoick arrived at his friend's house a little before seven the next morning and waited for Nathan to show up. Once the boy's black car pulled into the driveway, Gobber went out to speak with him before leaving in his own car. Nathaniel walked up the steps and faced Stoick cautiously. "You needed my help with something?"

"Two somethings actually, but first I want to apologize for the way I treated you and Hikke. I was very wrong and I'd like to make it up to everyone somehow."

Nathan stood with his mouth open for a few seconds before a slow smile spread over his face. "You mean it Mr. Haddock?! That's great! I'll help with whatever you need. Where do we start?"

"Inside."

Stoick led the boy to Gobber's study and pulled a worn picture album from the shelf. "You probably know how to do things with computers so could you get a couple of pictures into an email?"

"Sure. If you have an email address I can take a picture with my phone and send them to you."

Stoick nodded and told him the address while he found the pictures he needed. Nathan tapped the screen a few times. "And, you, are, done. They're waiting for you to send out. Who are these people anyway?"

"You probably don't recognize him, but that's Gobber when he was about your age, and a friend of his. They lost track of each other years ago and I know Gobber would like to know what happened to him."

"So that's Gobber's Christmas present, what about Hiccup's?"

Stoick gave the boy some money and told him exactly what he wanted. The grin on Nathaniel's face was still there when he reached Burgess an hour later.

A few days later, a middle aged man with greying black hair and dull blue eyes answered the knock on his front door. "Markko Seppänen?"

"Yes."

The other man handed him a printout of an old photograph, "Do you recognize this man?"

"Yes, that is me about thirty years ago. Where did you get it?"

"May I come in?"

Markko stepped back to allow the man to enter and led him to the kitchen. "Please pardon my lack of furniture, I am selling my house. May I ask who you are?"

"My name is Aulis Etsijä, I am a private detective and I have been hired by an American gentleman trying to find information about an old friend."

"I see. Well that is most certainly me in that photo, what else can I help you with?"

The man removed another picture from a folder and slid it across the table. "Do you know this man?"

The previously dull eyes brightened to a deep sapphire as Markko whispered, "Gobber? It's Gobber Bealcan! Wait here please!"

The man hurried into another room and Aulis could hear muttered exclamations and what sounded like a stack of books being overturned. Markko dashed breathlessly back to the table and opened a photo album. There on one of the pages was the exact picture Aulis had shown him. The detective smiled and nodded, "They're the same. Now that I have found you, I can either send my report directly to Mr. Haddock or give you his contact information."

Markko's face fell. "Haddock? Is that who is looking for me?"

"Yes; a Mr. Stoick Haddock, in America."

"I will contact him myself, thank you Mr. Etsijä."

When he had shown his guest out, Markko stared down at the email address in his hand, "You knew better than to get your hopes up, you old fool."

Stoick had his computer permanently switched on for the two weeks leading to Yule, waiting for any information from the Finnish detective. With only ten days to go, he was fading in and out of sleep on the sofa when a 'Ping' sounded from the computer and he hurried to check it.

"Thor Almighty, it's him! We did it!"

Quickly scanning the message, Stoick hurried to send one of his own. "Mr. Seppänen, I understand you once knew a friend of mine named Gobber Bealcan. He has wondered what had happened to you since he left Finland and I took it upon myself to find you. This may sound strange but I was hoping to ask you to come to Berk for Yule this year and surprise him. If you no longer wish to see him I will understand and not inform him of my search. Please reply with your answer. Stoick Haddock."

Not able to sit still and wait, Stoick went to the kitchen and made himself a light snack. A half hour went by with no reply and Stoick was wondering if there would even be one when the computer pinged once more.

"Dear Mr. Haddock, if it means seeing my old friend Gobber once again, I would fly to Berk on my own wings! I have a few minor things to take care of here, but will book the earliest flight to Berk that I can. I will most gladly be part of your Yule surprise and will count the days until I see my friend again. You will never know the depth of my gratitude to you for what you have done, and I look forward to thanking you in person. Markko."

Over the next few days, Stoick received updates from Markko about his itinerary and at one point had an interesting message.

"Stoick, I am pushing my flight back by one day. I was in the process of selling my house when Mr. Etsijä found me, and since I have no more family in Finland I have decided to extend my stay in America indefinitely. Arranging this will take the extra day I mentioned but I should still arrive on December twenty-third. Markko."

Stoick was concerned about the delay, but knew the prospect of Markko being able to stay longer than the weekend was too great to pass up. A knock on the door startled the man from his thoughts and he looked up to see Nathaniel with his nose pressed against the window grinning and waving a large shopping bag. Stoick let him in and the boy shivered, "Phew, it's a cold one out there! I wouldn't be surprised if we got one of those Berk Blizzards this year, eh, Mr Haddock?"

"Ye can call me Stoick ye know, and I just hope the snow holds off a few days longer. Did ye get it?"

Nathan grinned again and opened the bag with a flourish. "Biggest one they had! Do you have the hardware for it?"

"Aye, I'll get it put up today before the storm hits."

"Ok, when does Hiccup get home?"

Stoick smiled at the nickname even he had begun to call his son, "The twenty-fourth, just in time for Yule. Ye better get going before yer mother gets suspicious."

The boy wrapped his scarf tighter and opened the front door to a cold gust of wind, "Ok, see ya Stoick!"

Gobber had taken over whatever light work still trickled into the shop in the days leading to Yule so Stoick could focus on his preparations and the next few days were spent cleaning the house and buying food, with Gobber stopping by now and then with supplies and even a few bottles of mead he had been saving for a special occasion. On one such visit, he pulled into the driveway while Stoick was putting the finishing touches on his Yule project and shook his head in amazement, "Thor's beard, Stoick! I think they'll be able to see that from the moon!"

Stoick stepped back to survey his handiwork, "Do ye think Hiccup will like it?"

"Coming from ye, I think he'll love it."

The red haired man heaved a worried sigh, "I hope yer right."

On the twenty-second Markko emailed Stoick from his phone. "Stoick, I am at the Helsinki airport now. I will email you when I reach Reykjavik. Markko."

Three and a half hours later Stoick heard the familiar ping and checked the message. "Stoick, I have arrived in Reykjavik. I will email when I am in New York. Markko."

Stoick looked at the clock and knew that would be at least another seven hours so he decided to catch up on some much needed sleep and fell exhausted onto the couch. At eight o'clock that evening Stoick woke to the ping of a message. "Stoick, I am only now leaving Reykjavik. I should arrive in New York in six hours. Markko"

Stoick was perturbed by the delay, but reasoned there was still plenty of time to spare. Now wide awake for the night, the man found something to eat and turned on the television. "A severe winter storm will be coming in to cover the east coast sometime during the next twenty-four hours with a total expected snow accumulation of six to ten inches in some areas. Holiday flights may be delayed up to twenty-four hours or more-" Turning to another station, Stoick sighed and tried to think about something besides snow.

Hiccup nervously tapped his single foot against the hospital floor while Jack squeezed his hand. "Hey, don't worry about it Hic, your dad seems like a really great guy. I'm sure we'll all get along fine."

Hiccup's increasing nerves about going home had only helped to drive his nurses crazy with wanting to be out of bed and mobile as soon as possible. Though they made him use a wheelchair when they could, whenever he was alone or with visitors Hiccup was up walking on his good leg and a pair of crutches. His exercises had actually helped with his recovery time and by the twenty-fourth, he was allowed to go home with only the crutches and a warning to take things easy and enjoy the holidays. Now waiting for his turn to sign himself out, Hiccup was once again a bundle of nerves. "I know, but... we haven't really got to talk much yet and I still remember that last time was so bad I ended up moving in with you."

Jack pulled a face, "Gee, thanks."

Hiccup rolled his eyes and nudged him, "You know what I mean. It's just... trust takes time."

Hiccup's name was called and Jack helped him to stand and they made their way to the desk. The receptionist smiled up at him, "Haddock... Oh, I was here the day you arrived. Your father was very worried about you, I'm glad to see you came out alright."

Hiccup smiled back, "Thank you. No offence, but I'm glad to be getting out of here."

The girl laughed, "None taken, the food is terrible."

Jack couldn't help but add his two cents, "And please for the love of sanity, change the wall color!"

When they reached Jack's car, Hiccup took out his phone and dialed his father.

"Hiccup!"

"Hey dad, were on our way up now, so with the snow we should be there in an hour and a half."

"Great! I have a few surprises waiting for ye when ye get here. See ye soon."

"Bye dad."

 **Ho Ho Ho, and away we go!**


	10. Ch 10 -This is the one we'll remember

**Notes: This is being uploaded from my tablet, so I hope the formatting is okay.**

 **I don't speak Finnish, so please forgive any translation mistakes.**

 **This chapter contains about three tissue boxes worth of feels.**

 **Enjoy.**

Once the call with Hiccup ended Stoick was on again to Gobber, "They'll be here in a little over an hour, so get working on Nora!"

Gobber drove the mile out to the Fury house and rang the doorbell. That was the secret signal to Nathan to ready his best arguments. He let his friend in with a grin and closed the door behind him and they walked into the warm spicy smelling kitchen. "Mom, Gobber's here and wants to take us to see the Yule decorations."

Nora wiped her hands on her apron, "Well that's nice of you Gobber, but wouldn't you rather stay here where it's warm and have some gingersnaps? They're still hot."

"Oh, thank you Nora, maybe we could take some with us on the drive? Some folks around town have really put their hearts into decorating this year and I thought you'd like to see them."

Nora thought before removing her apron. "Well I suppose we could go for a little while. That storm won't get here for another couple of hours."

On the main road, Gobber turned towards the residential part of Berk and began slowly making his way closer to Stoick's. Nora became suspicious when two streets with particularly nice decorations were passed without even a glance. She looked over at the driver and raised her voice accusingly, "Gobber Bealcan, where exactly are you going with this car? This had better not be another of Stoick Haddock's weak attempts at earning my forgiveness."

Gobber avoided her piercing glare but kept driving. "Well... Yes and no. He does want ye to be his friend again but this is mostly a surprise homecoming party for Hiccup. Stoick wanted ye both to be there."

Nora crossed her arms and glowered out the front window, "That man has got a shit load of making up to do."

Turning into the Haddock driveway Nora's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. Gobber chuckled as he waved to Stoick who was sweeping snow off the front steps, "Does that count towards the pile?"

"Oh, my, gods."

As they hung up their coats, Nora narrowed her eyes calculatingly at Stoick. "Is that little decoration of yours for real?"

Nathan shot his mother a cheeky grin, "It better be, that thing was hard to find."

Nora gave him an 'I'll let that go for now' look and continued. "Is there anything else you'd like to say before your son gets here, Mr. Haddock." Stoick nodded, "There is. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for the pain I caused to my son and my closest friends and I hope ye can all forgive me."

Nora smiled and softened her tone, "That was very well said, Stoick, I think you finally found that light at the end of the tunnel."

Jack followed Hiccup's directions through Berk as the brunet watched out the side window, not really wanting to face this day any sooner than necessary. Jack pulled into the driveway and sat motionless for a few seconds before nudging Hiccup's arm. "Uh, Hiccup? You might want to look at this."

Hiccup turned to reply with some sarcastic remark but was instantly floored by the sight in front of him. The entire front of his house, of Stoick Haddock's house, was covered by the biggest, brightest, rainbow flag Hiccup had ever seen. Stoick came onto the porch followed by Nathan, Gobber, and Nora, and made his way to the car. Opening the passenger door, Stoick again kneeled down to look his son in the eye. "Is it alright Hiccup?"

Tears were flowing down the boy's face and he shook his head slowly, "Alright? Dad, it's perfect."

Jack grabbed Hiccup's crutches while Stoick carried his son into the house and set him down next to Toothless. "I missed you bud."

The black haired boy hugged his friend tight then put an arm around him for support. "I missed you too Hiccup. You'll never believe all the stuff that's happened in the last two weeks!"

After introducing Jack to Gobber and Nora, the three boys soon fell into their familiar mode of conversation and left the older adults to talk amongst themselves. By seven o'clock Stoick had all but given up on Markko arriving on time so he was startled when at a loud ping came from his computer. Nora looked around trying to identify the sound, "What was that?"

"Oh, just waiting on a last minute Yule present."

Gobber drained the last of his eggnog and eyed the bottom of the mug accusingly. "It's a bit late for that, isn't it?"

"I certainly hope not. Excuse me a minute."

Finding the boys gathered around the table playing a board game, Stoick tapped Nathan's shoulder and spoke low, "The present finally arrived in Burgess, but the weather is so bad I don't think we can get it here in time."

Toothless stood and leaned casually on the counter as he began dialing his phone, "Leave it to me."

Aster dove for his phone and instantly brightened at the name on the screen, "Nathan! What are you doing mate?"

"Having a little welcome home party for Hiccup."

"Lucky you! I'm bored out of my brains here. North is out doing his charity Santa Clause thing, Sandy's asleep, and Tooth has started her hour long teeth cleaning for the night, so that leaves me with nothing to do."

"Well I have something for you. Do you think the snow's too deep to pick something up and bring it here tonight?"

"Are you kidding? I could find my way through a rabbit tunnel with my eyes closed. Just tell me what you want and I'll get it there."

Nathan ckecked Markko's last email then stepped outside so Gobber wouldn't overhear and told Aster what he needed to know. Back inside Nathan wrote a quick message to Markko describing Aster so he'd recognise him and clicked send. "You're all set, Stoick. When you want something done right, call the Easter Bunny."

Jack and Hiccup started laughing as Stoick scrunched his face in confusion. "Er, aren't ye on the wrong holiday?"

Aster popped his head into the bathroom where Tooth was flossing for the third time that night. "Can I borrow your car for the night? Nathan needs me to pick someone up at the airport and take him to Berk."

The girl nodded and slurred through a mouthful of fingers, "Thure Bunny, th' keyth are on my dethk."

"Thanks."

Aster found the keys and put on his coat and scarf before stepping out into the blizzard. "Augh, it's freezing!"

Getting behind the wheel proved a tight squeeze until the boy remembered how short the usual driver was and moved the seat back. Getting to Burgess International Airport usually took fifteen minutes, but with the bad weather only increasing Aster arrived in a little over thirty. Having no idea what the guy he was supposed to find looked like, Aster made his way through the crowded maze until he found the information desk. "Excuse me, which gate is for the flight from New York?"

The bored looking attendant vaguely waved to his left, "Depends which one you want, but they're all over there."

"Ya mean there was more than one?!"

"Three actually."

Aster ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "Well thanks mate."

The gates in question were situated at three different points in the terminal and Aster had no way of knowing which was the right one. Looking around he spotted a large bronze statue in the center of the area and an idea formed in his head. Once he reached it he looked up and sighed. "Oh well, here goes nothing."

Glad he didn't have to climb far to see over the crowds, Aster scanned for anyone who seemed to be standing still; a group of nuns, an older couple who had just come from someplace hot if their sunburned faces were any indication, a woman trying to keep track of four rambunctious children, and a quiet middle aged man with a small suitcase. The last seemed the most likely candidate so Aster climbed down with shaky knees and made his way once more through the crowd. "Markko Seppänen?"

The man smiled and shook the boy's hand excitedly, "Yes! You must be Ethan. Your friend described you very well."

Aster blushed a little but remained focused. "Ya got any more luggage?"

"No, I am travelling very light. I find I have all I need in here."

He tapped the area over his heart and smiled. Aster smiled back in agreement and picked up the suitcase, "Right mate. Let's get ya to Berk."

On reaching the car Aster groaned and started rummaging in the trunk. "You'd think she'd at least keep a bloody ice scraper in here."

A quiet cough interrupted him and he looked up to see Markko holding out a bottle of amber tinted liquid. "Thanks mate, but I need clear the window or we aren't going anywhere."

The man shook his head. "Do you have a piece of cloth?"

Aster was confused but fished a paint splattered rag from his pocket and handed it to Markko. "This alright?"

"Perfect." Aster watched in amazment as ice slowly disappeared from the windshield with each swipe of the alcohol soaked rag. "Where did ya learn to do that?"

Markko screwed the cap back onto the bottle and carefully stowed it in his suitcase. "A mechanic friend of mine taught me that a long time ago."

Hiccup was begining to get tired, slowly he got up and stretched, leaning on his crutches. Jack stood to follow him but was stopped by Hiccup pressing a gentle kiss on his lips. "It's ok, I just want to talk to my dad for a minute."

Stoick was laughing at some story of Gobber's when he felt a small hand on his shoulder. "Can we talk?"

Stoick excused himself and followed Hiccup to the study where they sat in worn leather chairs. The big man silently waited for his son to speak. A hint of the old nervousness returned and Hiccup began fiddling with his shirt hem. "I wanted to thank you for the flag, that was... really a surprise. I'm still not sure where we are since last time, but, I hope we can start over. I've really hated not talking to you." "I know son, so have I. I want ye to know that I love ye and will support ye in anything ye want to do with yer life."

"Can I ask what changed your mind?"

"Many long talks with old friends. They weren't about to let me ruin my son's life, and I owe them so much for that." Stoick had a faraway look in his eyes for a second before coming back to himself and smiling. "So, how long have ye and Jack been together?"

Hiccup blinked at the sudden shift in the conversation but managed to keep up. "Oh, uh, about four years. He was, and still is, my first boyfriend, and I can't imagine being with anyone else."

"I'm happy for ye. He seems like a good lad and I look foward to getting to know him better."

Hiccup was about to reply when a rapid knock sounded on the door, and Nathaniel burst in. "Gobber wants to leave!"

Stoick helped Hiccup to stand and the boys followed quickly to the living room where Nora and Gobber stood waiting with their coats on. "Come on lad, I want to get ye and yer mother home before this storm gets any worse."

Nathaniel looked helplessly to his mother for support but the woman was in no mood for arguments. "I know you're glad to see Hiccup, but it's late, it's cold, and I'm tired, so we're going. You can come back tomorrow after a good nights sleep."

The boy pulled a frustrated face and was about to argue when his phone started ringing. Nora frowned deeply, "You can talk to Ethan when you get home, now let's go!"

Nathan raised his eyebrows in what he hoped was an 'I'm trying to tell you something here!' look and answered the call. "Nathaniel Fury! I don't speak eyebrow and if you don't turn off that phone right now you may lose it!"

Nathan walked into the kitchen with a finger stuck in his ear to hear Aster over the noise, and Stoick stepped in before Nora could lose her temper any further. "Nora, please, I need ye to stay a little longer."

"Give me one good reason why!" Gobber watched in confusion as Stoick pushed her towards the study and closed the door. Once inside, Nora spun around to face him. "Stoick Haddock, give me one reason why I shouldn't-"

"I found Markko."

Nora's breath caught sharply and she sank into a chair. "You... You know about Markko?"

"Gobber told me last year and I've been trying to find him since then. He'll be here in a few minutes."

"You did all that for Gobber?"

"I told ye I was trying to make up for things. Besides, I know what it is to lose someone I love. If there was even a thread of a chance that Markko was alive, I had to find out."

A few minutes later Gobber saw his friends come out of the study again and Nora hung up her coat.

"We're staying."

"Why? I thought ye were tired."

"I changed my mind."

Gobber ran a hand down his face in exasperation. "Nora, it's twenty degrees outside and it's only getting worse."

"I said we're staying and that's final!"

"Why are ye getting so worked up about this?!"

Nathan was looking out the window still trying to talk to Aster over the shouting, while Jack and Hiccup stood with Stoick on the far side of the living room, when the front door suddenly opened with a rush of cold air and snow. Two white covered figures entered and Nathan hurried to help the taller of the two close the door against the storm. "Oh my gods, you did it!"

"Were you honestly doubting me, mate?"

"Never!"

The room fell silent and Gobber looked around at the sea of expectant faces that seemed to be focused in his direction. Even the stranger seemed to be waiting for something... No, not waiting, watching. Watching every move like he wanted to never forget what he was seeing. Watching everything with sapphire blue eyes. Gobber shook his head roughly as if to clear it,

"Can't be..."

Tears began running down the stranger's cheeks as he unwound the scarf that still obscured most of his face.

"En ole koskaan unohtanut teitä." [I have never forgotten you.]

Stoick had only seen his friend break down on two other occasions, but neither would ever compare to this. A strangled sob rent the air as Markko found himself being crushed by the one person he thought he'd never see again.

"Luulin he tappoivat sinun!" [I thought they killed you!]

"Miksi et tule löytää minut?" [Why didn't you come find me?]

"Minä en voinut, ei kukaan kerro minulle mitään!" [I couldn't, no one would tell me anything!]

Nora tactfully shepherded the others into the kitchen and busied herself by filling the table with food. The boys were still slightly confused by everything that was going on and Jack asked, "Who was that exactly?"

Nora thought quietly for a minute before answering. "I don't think Gobber will mind if I break my promise now... He's from Finland. His name is Markko Seppänen and he was Gobber's partner. Markko was going to come to America with Gobber, but a week before they planned to leave some people attacked them, and they got separated. By the time Gobber was released from the hospital, his visa had run out and he had no idea where Markko was or what had happened to him. That was thirty years ago and Gobber made me promise not to tell anyone."

The four boys sat stunned and Hiccup shook his head, "I can't imagine living that long without Jack, let alone never knowing if he was dead or alive. I don't know how he's done it."

The kitchen was silent until Aster decided to lighten the mood. "Come on ya sad sacks, the story didn't end there. Gobber and Markko have a whole new chapter to write, and this time they'll do it together. How did he get here anyway? I mean, who found him?"

Nathan snagged a gingersnap before his mother could protest and crunched thoughtfully. "Stoick hired a detective to look for him and I scaned some old photographs into an email, which I guess helped."

Hiccup gaped at his father open mouthed, "You did it?"

Stoick crossed his massive arms and growled. "Why is everyone so surprised that I can act like a human being?!"

"Maybe because ye were acting like a stubborn Viking before!"

All eyes turned to see Gobber and Markko in the doorway wearing the happiest faces humanly possible. Gobber let go of Markko long enough to face his best friend. "Thank you, Stoick. I don't know what else to say, except... thank you."

The next few hours were the happiest any of them had ever known, surrounded by family and friends and love. Gobber laughed when Markko brought out the bottle from his suitcase and noticed the empty space at the top. "Akvaviiti! I haven't had that since I was in Finland. Ha ha! Looks like ye couldn't wait to try it."

Aster spoke up, "Oh, that went on the car window to stop the wipers icing up."

Gobber stared at Markko in amazement. "Of all the- Ye remembered that?! I taught him that trick with his first car! That old thing had the worst wipers ever, those things froze up if it even looked like snowing."

Everyone tried some of the drink, (even Aster and Nathaniel) but the only one besides Markko and Gobber who didn't feel as though they'd swallowed a hot coal, was Hiccup.

"It's good if you don't let it hit your tongue."

Jack raised his eyebrows appreciatively at the deep voice coming from his usually tenor boyfriend. "Wow, you should drink that stuff more often. Talk about sexy baritone!"

"Oh gods! You just had to say that didn't you?"

Jack turned to Aster. "See, what did I tell you?"

"I don't know, mate. Nathan's a tenor and I think it's adorable."

Toothless fluttered his eyelashes and grinned, "Not as adorable as an Australian talking about ankle biters."

Gobber downed another shot of akvaviiti and coughed. "I've always preferred a Finnish baritone myself."

Stoick groaned and pretended to look mournfully at Nora. "We're the only straight people in this room." The woman proped her chin up on her hand and yawned. "Speak for yourself. I had a girlfriend in high school."

By the time midnight rolled around everyone was exhausted but happy and decided it was time to go home. Hugs were exchanged as well as promises to visit again after the holidays were over. When the front door was opened all eyes stared in wonder at the scene in front of them. The storm was long gone and the air was completely calm with large snowflakes floating gently down to cover the ground in a velvet blanket of white. Nora sighed and her breath crystalized into the night air, "Well boys... this is the one we'll remember."

A unanimous decision had been made to ignore the mess until a much later time, and Jack helped Hiccup get ready for bed before falling exhausted into his own. Just as sleep was about to overtake him he was woken by a light tap on his door and he groggily stumbled up to answer it. "Oh, hey Stoick. What's up?"

As tired as he was, Jack instantly became alert by the man's next words. "Nothing much. I only wanted to tell ye that I gave ye the guest room on the off chance that ye weren't already sleeping with my son. If ye are, ye can stay in Hiccup's room if ye want. Goodnight Jack."

The hall light clicked off leaving Jack to stare wide eyed into the darkness. "Oh. My. Gods."

 **Notes: Thank you for staying with this until the end. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it, and I hope it reminds you that there will always be people who will love you for who you are.**

 **Love and Hygge,**

 **Snowflakesandangels**


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